MOST AIRPORTS throughout South Africa which were in close proximity to the recent World Cup venues, coped admirably with the influx of air traffic, with particularly good examples being those of Lanseria International, Johannesburg; Virginia, Durban; Wonderboom, Pretoria and Cape Town International which all handled the bulk of charter and corporate traffic at one time or another.
Of these, Lanseria was arguably the busiest, especially over the period of the final match when nearly 190 visiting aircraft were parked at the field.
Lanseria International on the evening of the World Cup final showing aircraft parkled alongside the secondary runway
The only exception was Durban’s new King Shaka International Airport where a fiasco developed on the night of the first semi-final resulting in flights being cancelled and others diverting due to congestion at the facility. The cause was under investigation at the time of writing. ExecuJet South Africa has claimed it led the way by handling over 2 230 movements during the recent World Cup. The company’s FBO operations based at Lanseria International and Cape Town International airports handled the vast majority of visiting aircraft during the Soccer World Cup. Business aircraft started arriving a week prior to the start of the series on June 11 with most departing immediately after the final on the night of July 11.
ExecuJet’s Lanseria apron and maintenance hangar on the evening of the final
ExecuJet claimed in a press statement released towards the end of July, that it had been the “company of choice for most business jet operators”. Its FBO facility at Lanseria handled over 1 430 business jet movements for the World Cup period with all business aircraft visiting Lanseria International Airport at one time or another. Similarly ExecuJet‘s Cape Town facility handled over 800 aircraft movements during the tournament, which included 105 out-station movements. A total of 165 business aircraft made use of the FBO in Cape Town.
ExecuJet’s FBO at Cape Town International during a relatively “quiet” period
Visitors included numerous Heads of States, FIFA delegates, Government officials, tournament sponsors, Hollywood celebrities and sporting icons. Five of the international teams playing in the tournament made exclusive use of the ExecuJet facility at Lanseria for all their domestic flights to various host cities. Strict security measures were enforced and the facility was declared a sterile area during these departures.
The peak of the tournament with regard to business aviation was prior to the final match in Johannesburg, when an influx of business jets began arriving at Lanseria International Airport from July 9. By Sunday, July 11, in all 187 aircraft were parked on the ExecuJet apron, Lanseria Airport’s main apron, freight apron and the parallel runway 06R. The bulk of the aircraft departed again on the same night immediately after the game had ended. ExecuJet ground personnel worked around the clock, alongside airport staff, to ensure smooth and safe operations at both facilities.
Ettore Poggi, ExecuJet South Africa’s managing director, said afterwards: “I have very seldom seen, in my entire working career, such dedication, team work, team spirit, motivation and willingness to pitch in and help. “ExecuJet South Africa pulled together as one team and handled 99% of all visiting aircraft. The team work and close co-operation between our staff, the airport personnel and all authorities was fantastic and contributed to the success,” Poggi said. ExecuJet also stated that it could not have done this without the tremendous support of its third party suppliers which went the extra mile to assist with fuel supply, transport, catering and hotel accommodation.
[Home]
