South African Airways suspends Blantyre services on safety findings

South African Airways has suspended its 3X-weekly service to Blantyre, Malawi, after the South African aviation regulator found what it described as serious safety risks at Blantyre Chileka International. Blantyre is the second city of the small southern African state. The airline initially suspended flights Jan 18 and said Jan 22 the suspension would continue at least through Jan 23. Following a base inspection of SAA’s Blantyre operations, the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) said it had found defects that potentially put lives at risk. “The finding raised against the national carrier primarily relates to the inadequacy of aviation infrastructure facilities and related emergency support services offered at Chileka International, one of the two Malawian bases utilised by SAA,” SACAA said. <br/>