Aviation accidents decrease by 50 percent
The number of aviation accidents in South Africa has decreased by 50% over the last four years.
Transport Minister Joe Maswanganyi has released the preliminary results of the recent audit conducted by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) on South Africa's administration of civil aviation safety and security oversight at the OR Tambo International Airport.
Maswanganyi says 72 aviation accidents were recorded in the 2016/2017 financial year, compared to 144 in 2013/2014.
"These preliminary results do not come as a surprise, because a closer look at aircraft accident statistics indicate that things have been improving, particularly over the last four years," he said.
Regarding ICAO's Effective Implementation, Maswanganyi says South Africa has moved from second in Africa to first, and globally moved from 41 to 33 after this audit.
"South Africa's ICAO audit results have risen from 83,8 percent to 86,71 percent. This is an increase of 3,43 percent in the level of Effective Implementation of ICAO's critical elements, with 86,71 percent significantly higher than the world average of 60 percent," he said.