A shortage of qualified flight engineers, pilots and aircraft has meant that the South African Air Force (SAAF) belatedly managed to send only a single Oryx helicopter to help with flood relief efforts in the Eastern Cape, where dozens of lives have been lost.
An Oryx departed for the Eastern Cape on Tuesday 17 June, a full week after parts of the province, especially Mthatha, were hit by heavy flooding, resulting in the deaths of over 90 people. Rescuers are still searching for more bodies as some residents remain unaccounted for. Floods damaged 58 schools, 20 healthcare centres, and other infrastructure, including roads and bridges. Hundreds of homes were destroyed, and power cut in several areas – nearly 3 000 people are estimated to have been left homeless.
The Air Force’s workhorse Oryx were not deployed sooner due mainly to a shortage of flight engineers. IOL quoted internal sources as saying the flight engineer shortage has compromised the Air Force’s ability to conduct search and rescue operations. defenceWeb understands that disaster management authorities requested SAAF assistance for flood relief, but none was forthcoming until yesterday. According to African Defence Review Director Darren Olivier, the request came fairly early but could not be acted on because aircraft and crews were not available.
He said it should be made clear that municipal disaster response authorities were left without support from the SAAF because the government has not funded the SAAF to provide it. “The President, the Minister of Defence, the Secretary for Defence, the Chief of the SANDF, and the Chief of the SAAF should be feeling the heat,” he said.
“Maybe then, when it becomes blatantly obvious to the public that the Air Force has been so badly underfunded for so long that it can’t even reliably respond to floods and other domestic crises any more, we may finally see the political will from Cabinet and Parliament to urgently increase funding to the necessary levels to rebuild the lost capability.”
The SAAF has often supported search and rescue and disaster relief operations, but is battling to currently do so due to a shortage of serviceable aircraft and crew. Only 15-20% of its 199-strong fleet is serviceable at any point, including the 36 Oryx transport helicopters.
In a presentation to the Joint Standing Committee on Defence last week, Armscor pointed out that the Oryx is utilised for various transport of troop as well as to aid in emergencies such as floods and putting out fires. “Not having the platform severely impacts the SAAF’s ability to perform these tasks,” it warned.
The state defence materiel agency added that obsolescence issues “are critical and severely impact the overall availability of the platform.” Major servicing of Oryx engines is due, and this is expected to be “a great cost driver”.
The state of the A109 fleet is similar, with the majority of maintenance requirements unfunded (R113 million funded out of R358 million required). “Funding shortage will result in no pilots being trained and various rescue missions not being performed,” Armscor said. Compounding A109 maintenance is the fact that there are delays in the delivery of engines due to the shortage in the supply of titanium as a result of the war in Ukraine.
This leaves seven BK117 and four Super Lynx as the remaining helicopters in the SAAF fleet. According to Armscor, only R19 million of a required R100 million maintenance contract with Airbus Helicopters is funded for the BK117s, while another R200 million is needed to keep the Super Lynx fleet flying (R95 million has been allocated to Leonardo for support).
Compounding aircraft serviceability is the lack of flight engineers. SANDF Director of Corporate Communication Rear Admiral (JG) Prince Tshabalala told IOL that flight engineers are a vital part of SAAF aircrew and critical missions cannot be fully executed without them, impacting operational readiness. “Currently, the SANDF operates at approximately 40% capacity, but once the budgeting process is complete, we will address these operational requirements.”
IOL previously reported that a shortage of flight engineers cripples the operational capacity of the SANDF’s most vital aircraft. Fewer than five flight engineers are apparently willing to fly, due to allowances they say are grossly insufficient and misclassified.
“They’re considered technicians now, not flight crew, and their allowances have been cut,” explained a senior officer who requested anonymity. This means pilots cannot maintain currency without flight engineers, and helicopter pilots cannot complete their training due to the lack of experienced flight engineers, creating a backlog.
“Many flight engineers are resigning, lured by higher salaries overseas, particularly in Middle Eastern countries, further depleting the fragile workforce,” a source told IOL.
Flight engineer allowances are believed to amount to less than R5 000.
Defence expert Dean Wingrin said that there are only around five flight engineers willing to fly in the SAAF, with four on external deployment. “Lack of incentives and aircrew allowances means those qualified do not want to fly.”
Wingrin explained that a flight engineer is an integral member of the helicopter crew. Like a loadmaster in a transport aircraft, they are responsible for the operation and maintenance of the aircraft’s systems and equipment. They look after passengers and cargo, man the hoist and gun, act as an extra pair of eyes in confined areas, manage the cargo sling, Bambi bucket etc. They also look after the helicopter when away from base, perform repairs in emergencies, assist with pre- and post-flight checks, etc.
“Without a flight engineer, the helicopter does not fly. Yet, about three years ago, the SAAF saw fit to withdraw the flight engineers’ flying allowance (that the pilots receive) and have not done anything to give it back or change the designation to aircrew from technician. This has severely impacted morale,” Wingrin stated. It’s no good for paying for maintenance and spares, if the helicopter cannot fly without the flight engineer, he points out.
“It is critical for the SAAF to sort this out quickly, but the situation is deteriorating, pilots are leaving the SAAF in droves. Even if money is provided for desperately needed spare parts and maintenance, there may not be any aircrew left to fly the aircraft.”
Tshabalala told IOL that there are ongoing efforts to review allowances and implement training initiatives through military academies to bolster flight engineer numbers.
An Air Force insider warns of a mass exodus of pilots, which will further exacerbate the SAAF’s ability to respond to crises. The Air Force’s Central Flying School predicts that operations will come to a halt by December. Another insider said about 70% of helicopter crew will have resigned by the end of next year.
