OR Tambo International Airport delays were allegedly triggered by a single sick call. Picture: Hein Kaiser An Air Traffic & Navigation Services (ATNS) insider has revealed that the crippling delays experienced at OR Tambo International Airport on Sunday, and their hangover into Monday morning, were set in motion by something that should never be able to compromise a national airspace system – one person allegedly called in sick. The source toldThe Citizenthat ATNS was unable to raise back-up staff to prevent big delays at the country’s busiest airport.
Inclement weather later in the day further compounded the backlog. “There was nobody willing, nor able, to pick up the slack,” the source said. “And there was no back-up plan for peak holiday traffic into OR Tambo.” ATNS issued advisories relating to both human resource shortages and later severe weather.
Spokesperson Mphilo Dlamini said there was an important distinction between outbound delays and inbound diversions. Dlamini said outbound flight delays were caused by HR constraints, while diversions from landing at OR Tambo were due to severe afternoon thunderstorms. “It is important to clarify that, because some stakeholders were issuing statements to the effect that the diversions were caused by staff shortages, which is not true,” Dlamini said.
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But he did not confirm or deny the allegation that the absence of a single member of staff triggered the initial chaos. Aviation consultant Sean Mendis said there was no excuse for delays caused by staffing failures. “ATNS has lost the plot with regard to its primary mission of managing national airspace.
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