Airlink has temporarily cancelled flights to and from Nampula Airport in northeastern Mozambique following a claim for damages by two Mozambican passengers offloaded from an Airlink flight in Johannesburg on 7 December.
The claim, which was instituted in Mozambique Court, was accompanied by an application to have Airlink’s aircraft seized in Mozambique pending the outcome of the claim. However, according to Airlink, the airline is not cited in the Court Order, which was obtained without a statement of claim being served on Airlink. The airline also stated that the claim and court order had also been granted in “seemingly dubious and nefarious circumstances.”
“Given the threat and potential for the actual seizure of Airlink aircraft, we have suspended all operations to and from Nampula while the matter is dealt with through legal and diplomatic channels,” said Rodger Foster, Airline CEO and Managing Director.
Acknowledging the suspension of flights has harmful consequences for trade, tourism and business, Foster also recognised that as a designated South African carrier, Airlink provides about 70 per cent of scheduled commercial air travel between South Africa and Mozambique, with its services regulated by the Bilateral Air Services Agreement between the two countries.
However, “no airline can be expected to continue providing a service under such conditions,” as those being imposed on Airlink added Foster. Under the BASA both states’ respective authorities are likely to intervene to prevent any unlawful seizure of Airlink’s aircraft. As such Airlink has notified South Africa’s Department of Transport, the Department of International Relations & Cooperations, as well as the SACAA and its Mozambique counterpart authority, the IACM.
“As the safety and well-being of its passengers, crew and aircraft come before any other operational consideration, Airlink has a strict zero-tolerance policy with regards to unruly behaviour onboard its aircraft,” concluded Foster. “Any interference, threats or belligerence towards our crew, or disruption to the crew’s primary task of providing passenger safety, puts the lives of all onboard at risk.”
Image source: Airlink
