South African Airways (SAA) is hitting turbulence again—but this time, it’s not mechanical failure or bad weather causing delays. Pilots from the state-owned airline are on strike, grounding major domestic and regional routes, with Johannesburg routes to Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth, Windhoek, and Mauritius among the casualties.

The strike comes after deadlocked negotiations over a wage hike, with pilots demanding a 15.7% increase while SAA countered with 8.46%, insisting that anything more could send them spiraling back into bankruptcy.

From business rescue to business woes

To understand the current chaos, it’s worth revisiting SAA’s rocky financial journey. Once the pride of South Africa’s skies, the airline has racked up losses of R28.9 billion since 2018 and survived only through taxpayer-funded bailouts totaling a staggering R48 billion.

These cash infusions weren’t enough to keep the airline afloat. In late 2019, SAA entered business rescue—a move meant to rehabilitate financially distressed companies. The process included drastic measures like slashing its fleet from 52 to just 16 aircrafts and cutting daily flights.

The cost-cutting also hit staff hard. SAA reduced its workforce by more than 80%, with its pool of pilots plummeting from 750 at its peak to just 146 today. Those who remained took steep salary cuts, with pilots losing up to 50% of their earnings. For many, these sacrifices were made under the promise of a brighter future for the airline.

The airline emerged in 2021, much leaner, and has since tried to steady its flight path — a challenging feat given the immense pressure Covid-19 placed on the global airline industry, including widespread travel restrictions and a sharp decline in passenger demand. Yet, the company succeeded against the odds. At the end of March 2023, the airline reported its first profit since 2012 — R252 million for the 2022/23 financial year. But while that’s great for shareholders and press releases, it hasn’t translated to happy pilots.

SAA’s aviators argue they’re still paying the price for years of mismanagement. Meanwhile, SAA points out that it’s barely out of intensive care and says meeting the pilots’ demands would be financial suicide.

A balancing act at 30,000 feet

From the pilots’ perspective, they’ve already sacrificed a lot to keep SAA aloft during its darkest days. They argue their demands are about fairness and safety, not just pay. On the flip side, critics point out that in a country where most people would leap at an 8% raise (close to 3% higher than the inflation rate), their stance feels out of touch.

SAA’s financial history doesn’t help its case. While it boasts recent profitability, South Africans haven’t forgotten the billions in taxpayer bailouts that kept the airline airborne. 

For now, passengers are left stranded, pilots are picketing, and SAA is scrambling. As the holiday season approaches, the airline’s reputation hangs in the balance.