The government has selected the Takatso Consortium, comprising infrastructure investor Harith General Partners and aviation group Global Aviation, as SAA’s preferred strategic equity partner. The deal brings an end to years of speculation over the future of the troubled airline, which has been blighted by debt and mismanagement. The airline has received billions of rands in government bailouts but has not turned a profit since 2011, leading to a fierce debate in which some politicians advocated its permanent closure and others supported full or part privatisation. The Takatso Consortium, which says it will relaunch SAA as “a viable, sustainable, scalable and agile airline,” will own 51% and the Department of Public Enterprises 49%. The consortium said that it intends to list the airline in the future as a way of addressing future funding requirements.
Abundance of low-priced aircraft available globally” offered an opportunity for the relaunch, and said that transformation, including the accelerated training and promotion of qualified black pilots, would be at the heart of the relaunch. The consortium said that a due diligence exercise will now get under way. Once completed, the consortium will reveal details including route network rollout, fleet selection, the leadership team, transformation, brand relaunch, technology, the future of SAA’s subsidiaries, and global partnerships. The partnership represents a robust, exciting South African-bred solution. Harith, as owners of Lanseria International Airport, has significant experience in the transport infrastructure and aviation sectors.