Acsa apologises to irate customers for refuelling issues

Operations at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg have returned to normal after delays on Monday morning when refuelling issues affected flights.

The disruption, caused by a faulty valve that was fixed in the afternoon, led to passengers being stranded for hours as aircraft were unable to “refuel as normal”, according to Airports Company SA (Acsa).

In an update later, Acsa assured passengers the situation had been resolved.

“The fuel system is now fully operational and fuel trucks are on their way to the apron at OR Tambo International Airport. Operations are back to normal. We apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused,” it said.

The system failure led to 54 flights being cancelled or delayed.

Some passengers expressed frustration over the disruptions and the effect they had on their travel plans.

Zolani Zonyane, one of the affected travellers, shared their frustration on X. “Operations are currently back to normal? That’s a lie. I have a seven-year-old who was so excited about her destination. It’s more than two hours since her flight should have departed but she’s anxious, traumatised and miserable at the airport,” Zonyane said.

Other passengers also voiced displeasure with the delays and lack of communication from the airlines. Trish Sierra-Petrick, whose flight was also delayed, said: “If normal is your 6pm departure further delayed to 10.15pm and other flights cancelled, then, yes, everything is definitely back to normal.”

Despite the operational issues, Acsa repeated its apologies, urging affected travellers to remain patient as operations returned to normal.

While the refuelling problems have been addressed, many passengers are calling for greater transparency and better communication in future situations to reduce the stress and confusion that often accompany flight delays.

Ross Crichton took to Facebook calling for better communication from airlines.

“Dear airlines and specifically CEOs of airlines, the minute you communicate with your clients who are affected by delays, you will ease their uncertainty and anxiety. You have our details, so why the silent treatment when it goes squirrelly? Be better at looking after your clients and maybe, just maybe, you’ll buy yourself some loyalty,” he said.

The disruption follows SAA announcing the suspension of its pilots’ strike.

The DA has called on transport minister Barbara Creecy to investigate the cause of the refuelling failure.

The party’s tourism spokesperson, Haseena Ismail said: “These challenges deter travellers, lead to financial losses, and tarnish SA’s reputation as a tourist destination. It is imperative to determine how this crisis occurred and to implement measures that will prevent similar disruptions in the future. We do not need a patch-up job, we need the issue to be solved completely, so that it does not happen again. Travellers and tourists must have the confidence that OR Tambo Airport is safe, reliable and not a risk to their travel plans.”

Meanwhile, FlySafair has written to Acsa, requesting a refund of all passenger charges for flights delayed due to the disruption. “We believe this situation was entirely preventable and that sufficient contingency systems should have been in place to avoid this failure. This is critical infrastructure, and incidents like this should not be allowed to occur,” said chief marketing officer Kirby Gordon.

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