Question NW1947 to the Minister of Finance
20 July 2017 - NW1947
Figg, Mr MJ to ask the Minister of Finance
(1)(a) How many aircraft does the SA Airways (SAA) have in its (i) domestic and (ii) international fleet and (b) what are the details of the (i) models, (ii) years of service, (iii) frequency of use, (iv) operable status of and (v) routes serviced by each aircraft; (2) whether the specified aircraft adequately meet the SAA’s domestic and international demand; if not, what are the relevant details; (3) whether SAA has any spare aircraft available in the eventuality of emergencies due to increased demand and/or as a result of breakdowns; if so, what are the relevant details in each case?
Reply:
1. The table link below indicates the number of aircraft in SAA fleet, models thereof and years in service. The domestic network is serviced by the narrow-bodies and international network by the wide-bodies. All aircraft in SAA fleet are operable.
https://pmg.org.za/files/RNW1947TABLE-170720.pdf
2. The aircraft have adequate range and capacity to meet the SAA Network demand. The biggest challenge on the wide body fleet is that SAA still operates the A340 fleet, which on average are now 12 years old. These four-engines aircraft are expensive to operate and maintain.
3. SAA currently has some spare capacity in wide-body (long range) aircraft. This is due to the entry of the 5x A330-300 new aircraft. However, SAA will have to return 2x A340-600s at the end of lease in July and August 2017), at which time some of the excess wide-body capacity will be removed.