Flights are being diverted away from Cape Town International Airport (CTIA) following power disruptions caused by a damaged cable which impacted operations at the airport’s fuel depot and led to aircraft landing delays.
Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) confirmed that flight schedules have been affected by the outage, and diversions are currently in place as the team works to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.
“Airport operations are currently being powered by generators while repairs are underway to fully restore the fuel system,” said ACSA.
“The issue has been temporarily resolved, and refuelling operations have resumed.”
Passengers are advised to contact their airlines for updates on flight schedules and to download the ACSA Mobile App for real-time flight notifications and updates.
Alarm bells for OR Tambo
Cape Town International has become the second major South African airport in a matter of one week from which flights are being diverted as a result of issues on the ground.
Several planes have been pointed away from OR Tambo International in Johannesburg over the last few days due to a looming fuel shortage.
A fire at the National Petroleum Refiners of South Africa (Natref) refinery on 4 January 2025 severely impacted the production and supply of jet fuels to the country’s biggest airport which is expected to continue for at least another month.
While emergency supply has been secured to sustain OR Tambo until 2 February, Natref doesn’t plan to restart production until the 27th which would leave the airport without fuel for three and a half weeks.
The airport currently has 27.1 million litres of jet fuel on hand and uses about 3.6 million litres a day.
Some aircraft have resorted to carrying excess fuel when flying into OR Tambo to ensure they will be able to get to another destination in the Southern Hemisphere should they be unable to refuel.
Others including flights from major airlines such as Swiss Air and Lufthansa have resorted to landing in Namibia to top up their tanks.
ACSA said it is actively working with stakeholders to find a solution before 2 February.
The proposed remedies thus far include:
- Engaging all stakeholders to deal with the shortage caused by the Natref fire and build fuel reserves
- Requesting Transnet to prioritise the movement of fuel stock from Durban to Gauteng once imported volumes arrive
- Requesting the fuel industry to build up more stocks at King Shaka International Airport which has higher fuel capacity than its daily consumption
ACSA has also encouraged fuel suppliers to build fuel reserves – the additional fuel carried by aircraft beyond the planned requirements for a flight – which serves as a critical safety buffer for unforeseen circumstances such as delays, diversions, or unexpected changes in flight conditions.
Industry veterans have warned that if a solution is not found, it could have dire consequences for the country’s economy.
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