Comair’s case against the $407 million government guarantee for state-owned South African Airways in 2012 has been dismissed by the country’s High Court.
Comair’s court action got under way in February 2013, challenging what it thought were the ministers of finance and public enterprise’s failure to comply with official government policy and legislation governing the operation of SAA as a state-owned entity.
Comair’s view was that the current and previous government guarantees, which now amount to over $1.14 billion, do not comply with either the Domestic Aviation Transport Policy or the current legislation.
“Government bailouts for SAA skewed this commercial reality, as it impacted negatively on all current and potential airline operators,” said Erik Venter, Comair CEO.
Commenting on their next steps, Venter said Comair would consult with its legal team to consider its options and the way forward.