UPDATE: Emirates Resumes Flights
After the writing of this article, Emirates announced service to South Africa will resume in full tomorrow, with flights to Cape Town, Durban, and Johannesburg operating. Crews will not be required to submit negative COVID-19 tests, but will be required to self-isolate in their hotel rooms without them. The new policy has not been officially communicated by the South African government.
Mass confusion over updated visa rules, which impact passengers and airline crews alike, may force more carriers to pull out of South Africa. Emirates has already suspended service to Durban and Cape Town and Lufthansa is reportedly considering a suspension too.
Emirates Suspends South Africa Service As Visa Confusion Reigns
In South Africa, visa requirements are set by the Ministry of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA). While South Africa has recently re-opened its international borders, even COGTA’s own press release is unclear concerning its new visa policy and any exceptions which may apply.
Thus, the problem is not only new visa requirements, but uncertainty surrounding them. Press reports and airlines cannot even say with clarity if or when visas are required. The government has so far not clarified.
These restrictions, including mandatory self-quarantine, impact not only passengers, but regularly-tested airline crewmembers.
On Sunday, Emirates cancelled most service to South Africa. It cited the sudden change in visa policy as the reason, specifically noting that the new rules treat airline crews the same as passengers. Today’s flight to Durban was also cancelled. Tomorrow’s flight to Johannesburg is still scheduled, but will not operate absent clarity concerning visa waivers for crews.
Manny de Freitas, a Member of the South African Parliament with the Democratic Alliance, condemned the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party for this cancellation:
“The cancellation with immediate effect of key Emirates flights to South Africa comes as a direct result of national government’s shambolic management of the reopening of South Africa’s borders for leisure travel in a time when our tourism industry is in dire straits.”
Emirates declined to comment for this story.
Was A Lufthansa Flight Turned Away?
Turning to Lufthansa, de Freitas also added:
“It is also reported that although passengers are arriving in South Africa with a negative Covid-19 test no older than 72 hours, as requested by government regulation, travellers are still being turned away from ports. On Friday, 2 October 2020, another prominent international airline for South Africa, Lufthansa, was reportedly refused entry at OR Tambo International Airport for not meeting the visa requirement, when this requirement seemingly does not exist…
The website of the German Foreign Office in Pretoria states it is “not known” whether a visa was required to visit South Africa and that it was “seeking clarification.”
The result: numerous reports suggesting Lufthansa may also suspend service to South Africa and other international airlines could follow.
CONCLUSION
De Freitas added:
“The ANC’s complete and utter mismanagement of such a crucial economic sector has once again made us the laughingstock of the travel world. But, more crucially, it has placed the livelihoods of millions of South Africans at peril. Regulations surrounding international travel and tourism must be clarified as a matter of urgency if we are to protect an industry upon which countless jobs rely in an economy which lies in tatters.”
While “laughingstock of the travel world” may be an overstatement, clarification of who can travel to South Africa and how should be a top priority for the government.
image: Curimedia / Flickr
An already dysfunctional government worsen if that is even possible. Its very sad because it’s a beautiful country as well as its people. This shuts down many options to get there but then who is traveling to SA other than for business? We canceled our last trip months ago and were just starting to think about many next year.
The right to travel, live and work freely on the land called earth is one that all citizens of the world are born with. Our rights are supreme. NO entity has rights. Not honoring the rights of man is a violation and crime against humanity. Passports and visas are military documents hence their persistent declaration of a state of disaster so they can try their hand through “mefical” martial.law. Since there is NO pandemic worldwide there is NO justification for these “status of emergencies”. Mankind must insist that these be lifted. Airways, land and sea is the common property of mankind. We must stand on our rights and those who violate these must be brought to book and taken out (not for lunch).
The right to travel, live and work freely on the land called earth is one that all citizens of the world are born with. Our rights are supreme. NO entity has rights. Not honoring the rights of man is a violation and crime against humanity. Passports and visas are military documents hence their persistent declaration of a state of disaster so they can try their hand through “medical” martial.law. Since there is NO pandemic worldwide there is NO justification for these “status of emergencies”. Mankind must insist that these be lifted. Airways, land and sea is the common property of mankind. We must stand on our rights and those who violate these must be brought to book and taken out (not for lunch).
This entire thing seems to have been much ado about nothing drummed up by the DA for political reasons.
Emirates never suspended flights to South Africa. Emirates crew were never denied entry to South Africa. They have flown to SA every day since they restarted flights on 03OCT20. The end.
This may well be a DA stunt, but the problem was not denying the crew entry, wasn’t it forcing them to quarantine even with a negative PCR test?
No. That wasn’t the case.
The usual DA aligned media sources are just parroting the party spin here (viz. everything the ANC does must be bad/incompetent) without actually investigating or understanding the subtleties of the issue.
Are South African citizens working overseas allowed to came to South Africa with a covid19 of negative certificates.
Yes.
I ever fly by Emirate but in my dream….maybe next time its true..i love you Emirate..
Your article is even more confusing.
It drips with white political agenda and present “facts” which aren’t even facts all dripping with opposition and supremacist venom for a black government.
The issue is not and wasn’t visa requirements as government was never unclear about that. What was at issue was the presentation of negative COVID-19 PCR test and self quarantine for crew for each flight. The same as is required for the passengers.
Obviously businesses such as the airlines factor in the quantifying costs of such a requirement and that is reasonable to do. What is however not reasonable is to expect that any sovereign country and it’s people to just submit to every Tom, Dick and Harry’s whining about attempting to apply reasonable preventive measures amidst a global pandemic that has proven to be lethal.
We’ve already seen the spike in incidences deaths in countries attempting a “normalisation” via international travel.
Given these factors is it such a bad requirement to act responsibly and demand the following of requirements which are internationally accepted?
My friend can’t even visit home because the Saudis only allow return travelling under very strict conditions subject to the negative COVID-19 PCR certificate valid for no older than 72hours backdated from the date of departure something which he understand and respect. It’s been almost a year since he last visited home.
Is it such a crime that the Sough African governments requirement to safeguard its people should be ridiculed and put under gang like behaviour to force it and thereby people to submit to sectarian interests?
Haven’t we learn anything from our history or is it because it is a black government from an African country African?
Some socalled journalists have to seriously be questioned what and whose agenda they are punting.
Sorry Brian, but it isn’t biased or a display of “white political agenda” to note what a corrupt government the ANC is and how it has driven South Africa into the ground through ineptitude and mismanagement.
I’m not calling for a return to apartheid, an evil system that violated fundamental human rights. But what a mess ANC has left for whites and blacks alike.
Don’t try to defend it.
Afrocentric plonker!
Brian, South Africa is a total mess and you know it. ANC only knows how to break things, properly.
Hello . My wife arrived with 72 hrs pcr test in Dubai and it had not expired . I was forced to pay for another test that cost me 457 euros and a visa that cost 487 euros at the airport as she had to go to a hotel and wait for connecting 7 days latter as they were no connecting flights to South Africa. She had to pay for another test to leave Dubai as she was turned back at the airport for not having a new pcr test. South Africa is strict but it’s nothing compared to Dubai emirates as the6 atrict like hell . They even confiscated my wife’s ticket and passport until she provide a negative pcr test . On top of that l had to pay 497 euros for a covid insurance that they said she needed to go to the hotel and without it she would not give her passport to go through immigration and is unfair and inhumane to treat a woman with so mist disgust , South Africa should make sure every emerita poilot or no pilot should pay and bring in pcr test 72 hrs ina when they set foot in my country . They are nickerpoomps
Right on Boet FW!
So sad that SA do not like Tourists anymore and hurts SA Economy badly.
Home affairs is a mess since decades!
I am a South African resident, I have a work permit. I came to the USA for tourism last year and I was stuck here due to the Covid shutdowns. I want to return to SA now, will I be allowed entry?
Is your residency/work permit still valid? What is your nationality?
Yes it is valid until Dec 2021. My nationality is Zimbabwean
My understanding is you can return, but that seems to be part of the confusion here…that there is no way to know for sure until you turn up at the border. Good luck.
I’m a Nigerian staying in south Africa and I have a south Africa working permit and I want to travel to Dubai for two weeks holiday on December 12 will I be allow to fly from south Africa here to Dubai?
You should be with negative PCR test. But December is a long time away…rules may change by then.
You abandoned your position to work with the ANC after the 1994 elections………….
You had other easier things to do??????? So you DO NOT represent the SA White
population.
So we do not need your comments or excuses……..The ANC were left by you and your
buddies to govern there way,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,So dont come with your sorry stories now.