Coronavirus crisis threatens to push South African carriers over the edge

While the coronavirus pandemic has had a wide-ranging impact across African carriers, the timing of the crisis has been particularly calamitous for South Africa’s struggling airline sector. The country’s carriers, notably its 2 state-held operators, were already in the mire even before the coronavirus pandemic prompted the halting of passenger services and vital revenues. Now it appears long-struggling South African Airways could be approaching an endgame after wide-ranging reports suggest the govt has told administrators running the airline that it is not able to give it any more funds towards its rescue. Debt-ridden SAA was put into formal restructuring last December. The restructuring was already proving complex. And then, due to travel restrictions, SAA halted scheduled passenger flights as of March 24.<br/>