Regional airline Cemair says that its popular airline service between Cape Town and the Garden Route town of Plettenberg Bay will remain suspended.
The suspension is due to ongoing concerns over the status of Plettenberg Bay Airport. Concerns first arose on July 2, 2024, when Cemair, the only operator offering scheduled flights between Cape Town and ‘Plett’ was told by airport management that the airport’s license from local aviation authorities was about to be revoked. This was, the airport said, due to safety concerns around the condition of the runway and taxiway.
‘As a result, all flights into Plettenberg Bay from both Johannesburg and Cape Town were cancelled with immediate effect up to and including the end of November 2024. This was the anticipated period for the runway work to be scoped, planned and completed,’ explained CemAir in a statement.
This was soon followed by contradictory statements from the airport and the local Bitou municipality as to whether the airport would remain open. To date, no airport closure dates have been confirmed.
However, although CemAir plans to operate four flights a week between Johannesburg and Plettenberg Bay from July 25, ‘the Plettenberg Bay to Cape Town route will remain suspended and will be reintroduced at a date to be announced,’ says the airline. ‘Based on the anticipated runway work, an airport closure is anticipated in the medium-term future for temporary work and again later in the year for approximately six weeks for the permanent runway repairs. Although the date of closure has not been determined it is anticipated that CemAir will be able to provide reasonable notice of flight disruptions.’
CemAir has operated scheduled airline services into Plettenberg Bay from both Johannesburg and Cape Town since 2014.
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