through airports
17 February 2009
A special task team comprising representatives from South African Airways
(SAA), Airports Company SA (Acsa), South African Revenue Service (SARS)
officials and the South African Police Service (SAPS) was today formed to
identify immediate additional measures aimed at stopping the drug traffic
through SAA and any other carriers that operate at South African airports.
The team will review the additional interventions implemented by SAA since
the first incident in January 2009 and manage the urgent implementation of
additional security measures. The team will also identify potential risk areas
involving the trafficking of contraband across airport operations.
Security was stepped up following the arrests in January. Amongst the
measures introduced by SAA were changing security systems, physical searches of
bags and using dogs airside. These and other measures will now be extended
across all SAA international flights.
Further, SAA can confirm that all 15 crew members (three cockpit and twelve
cabin crew) detained by United Kingdom (UK) authorities in London have now been
released. The group, who operated flight SA234 from Johannesburg to London
yesterday morning, were detained by authorities in London on Monday after
contraband was found in a piece of hand luggage on the crew bus at Heathrow
Airport.
The crew members have been released on their own cognisance, and will be
required to appear back in London on 6 April 2009. At this stage the conditions
of their release are unknown. Arrangements for their possible return to South
Africa are being made, but these will depend on the conditions of their
release.
The airline is co-operating fully with the British authorities in an
investigation which is currently under way. An investigation in Johannesburg,
involving SAA Aviation Security and the SAPS Crime Intelligence Unit, is also
under way.
This incident comes after SAA crew members were arrested in London in
January 2009 following the discovery of illegal contraband on a crew bus. SAA
co-operated closely with authorities in that investigation which resulted in
the speedy arrest of an SAA crew member and a security guard employed by the
company contracted by SAA to screen crew members' luggage.
SAA remains committed to a zero tolerance approach towards the use of the
airline's services for any criminal activity and will continue to closely
monitor the situation going forward.
For further information, please contact:
Robyn Chalmers, SAA
Tel: 011 978 2729
Cell: 083 282 6761
Solomon Makgale, ACSA
Tel: 011 723 1536
Cell: 082 781 8863
Tumi Golding, SAPS
Cell: 082 826 6181
Adrian Lackay, SARS
Cell: 083 388 2580
Issued by: South African Revenue Service
17 February 2009
Source: South African Revenue Service (http://www.sars.gov.za)
