State of the City Address
The DA welcomes Tshwane Executive Mayor Kgosienso Ramokgopa’s announcement during his 2015 State of the City address that two airlines would provide three daily flights between Wonderboom Airport and Cape Town.
The announcement came as a surprise, as the decision was presented neither to the city’s Transport and Roads Committee nor to Council. It is nevertheless a positive step for Wonderboom, which has been seriously neglected in recent years.
Hopefully, this will be better planned than the previous attempt to introduce scheduled domestic flights.
Preservation of Wonderboom Aiport
The DA has fought a long campaign in the Metro Council for the preservation and utilisation of Wonderboom as an economic asset, and has consistently urged that the necessary changes be made to allow the airport to reach its full potential.
For years the many private flying schools and air charter companies based at the airport have battled both with a lack of and price of fuel, which for long was the highest in the country.
Questionable Tenders
Both these problems had their roots in questionable tenders approved by municipal officials.
The struggle by operators to obtain fuel and keep their businesses going is well documented, but in the process many paid large amounts of money to construct their own fuelling structures.
However, the new Wonderboom Airport bylaw, which will shortly go to Council, stipulates that the municipality will be the sole fuel supplier at the airport.
This of course raises the question of whether operators will be compensated for their outlays as a result of fuel problems not of their making.
Tshwane Executive Mayor Kgosienso Ramokgopa to Calrify
Mayor Ramokgopa should clarify this as a matter of urgency, as well as confirm that the Civil Aviation Authority has approved the routes he has announced.
The nature and cost of any improvements to the airport to meet national safety standards should also be put to Council without delay.
The DA looks forward to the privatisation of the management of Wonderboom Airport, to allow it to operate on business principles separate from the municipality, as well as to the granting of international status, which has been dragging on for more than a decade.
Media Enquiries:
Justus de Goede MPL
DA Gauteng Spokesperson on Transportation
060 558 8305