Mango grounded, yet again, as unions apply for business rescue

Severely distressed budget airline Mango announced this morning that it has again suspended all flights, with immediate effect.

This time the grounding is due to non-payment to Air Traffic Navigation Services (ATNS).

The airline was grounded in late April this year for non-payment of Airports Company of South Africa (ACSA) bills. Mango has also not paid staff salaries for June and July, and staff filed a motion at the high court in Johannesburg on Monday to force the company into business rescue.

Mango’s acting CEO William Ndlovu said in the statement, not dissimilar to the one issued in response to the ACSA grounding: “We can confirm that our services and all flights are temporarily suspended from today, 27 July 2021 until further notice due to outstanding payments to ATNS. Senior management and our shareholder are locked in emergency discussions to find an amicable solution to this impasse.”

He added that affected passengers with valid and available contact details would be informed via email and SMS.

The statement also reads: “Customers are also urged to contact us daily via email at enquiries@flymango.com and/or vouchers@flymango.com to deal with daily cancellations and voucher related matters specifically. Issued vouchers will be valid for 24 months.”

However, at this rate, Mango may not be around to honour these vouchers, Jordan Butler of the Mango Pilots’ Association remarked.

“I consider the grounding a simple tactic by the shareholder to leverage themselves over already desperate employees in order to gain ultimate control of the BR [business rescue] process and fulfil their agenda.”

The Mango Pilot’s Association, National Union of Metal Workers of South Africa (Numsa) and the South African Cabin Crew Association have been in protracted talks with shareholder South African Airways (SAA) and the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) for weeks, extending a hand of collaboration to ensure the airline’s survival.

As it stands, Mango’s shareholders, led by Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan, are withholding the R 819 million bailout due to the lack of a business plan that SAA’s board was allegedly tasked with developing.

In the meantime, the union threesome applied to the high court on Monday to force Mango into business rescue, after a year of inaction by the DPE and the SAA board. It has become a race to dip the airline into the rescue process, with SAA announcing its intention to do the same after failing to partner with Mango employees.

Ndlovu added in his statement that passengers impacted by its second grounding in two months may also direct message “or reach us via our social media platforms and our website to enquiry (sic) about cancellations or any other flight related matter in this regard. Mango is currently implementing alternative travel arrangements for affected customers from today and daily until this matter is resolved. We plan to resume normal operations as soon as possible”.

“We ask for calm and patience as we navigate through these challenges. We will update the public as soon as possible.”