airport – praag.org

Johannesburg airport robbers arrested

The National Commissioner of the South African Police Service, General Khehla John Sitole, has welcomed the arrest on 21 February of suspects believed to have been involved in cases of robbery of people being followed from the O. R. Tambo International Airport and praised members for their sterling work.

This morning, members from the National Investigation Unit (NINU) together with members of O. R. Tambo International Airport and the SAPS Flying Squad, acting on intelligence, arrested four men in Alexandra Township outside Johannesburg. The suspects were allegedly planning a robbery when our team pounced on them as they were changing the number plates on their sedan. However, three suspects managed to flee, initiating a high speed chase and a shootout between the suspects and the police. The suspect’s vehicle swerved off the road, crashing to a halt.

Four suspects were arrested of which one was shot and wounded. Our team also recovered at least two handguns. The National Commissioner, in praising the SAPS team for this significant success said, “I am very pleased with the progress we are making to significantly reduce this category of crime but more importantly I am equally pleased that our proactive strategy is yielding positive results”.

These suspects are believed to have been involved in multiple cases of people being followed from the OR Tambo Airport and robbed. The firearms will be sent for ballistic testing to determine if they have been used in the commission of crimes.

“We appeal to anyone who may have any information on crime are requested to please contact our Crime Stop number 086 00 10111. All callers may remain anonymous and all information will be treated with strictest confidence,” the police said in a statement.

No water at OR Tambo

There was no water supply at Africa’s biggest airport, OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg, on Friday morning due to water pipe connection problems, the Airports Company of SA said.

“This problem has affected one section of the airport, flights are not affected at all. The functioning of toilets has as a result been affected,” said Acsa spokesman Collen Naidoo.

The airport management had to shut down the water supply to enable engineers to fix the problem, he said.

Travellers complained about unavailability of water at the airport on social media.

Some complained that most restaurants did not have beverages such as coffee available due to water shortage.

Naidoo said the situation was temporary and would be fixed very soon.

Source: ANA

Vnukovo crash: Custody demanded for snowplow driver

A court in Moscow is set to consider on Thursday an appeal from investigators asking to extend a custody term for Vladimir Martynenko, an operator of a snowplow that caused a tragic crash in which Total’s CEO Christophe de Margerie, two pilots and a flight attendant, all of them French citizens, died in the crash.

Officials from the Russian Investigative Committee demanded the detention of the snowplow driver until December 21, saying that if he is not held, he could warn “other participants in the crime.”

During the takeoff at Moscow airport Vnukovo on Monday night, the four-seat Dassault Falcon business jet, en route to Paris, collided with a snowplow, caught fire and fell onto the runway.

Following the incident Martynenko was detained for the period of 48 hours, which expire on Thursday. Martynenko, who emerged unhurt from the incident, was reportedly under alcoholic influence, while he himself acknowledged that he had a cup of coffee with cognac in it before his shift.

A criminal case has been opened in Russia into the violation of traffic safety and operation of the plane. Russian Prosecutor General Yury Chaika personally oversees the investigation.

Vladimir Markin, a spokesman for the Russian Investigative Committee, said earlier on Thursday that Four staff members of Moscow’s Vnukovo International Airport were detained on suspicion of their duties’ negligence in regard to the Falcon-300 private jet crash.

The detained are chief engineer of the airport’s service Vladimir Ledenev, who was in charge of snow-clearing works at the time of the incident, flights director Roman Dunayev, intern air traffic controller Svetlana Krivsun and airport’s chief air traffic controller Alexander Kruglov, who was in charge of the air traffic at the time of the tragic crash.

The head and deputy-head of Vnukovo Airport have also resigned, the airport’s press service announced.

“Due to tragic events on the night of October 20 to 21, the head of the Vnukovo International Airport Andrey Diakov and deputy head, Lieutenant-General of Aviation in Reserve Sergey Solntsev, have resigned. The resignations have been accepted,” said a statement.

Large fire forces Nairobi airport closure

A massive fire engulfed the arrivals hall at Kenya’s main international airport early Wednesday, forcing East Africa’s largest airport to close and the rerouting of all inbound flights.

Dark black smoke that billowed skyward was visible across much of Nairobi as emergency teams battled the blaze. Stranded passengers stood on sidewalks outside the airport with their luggage in hand.

The Kenya Airports Authority said the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport has been closed until further notice so that emergency teams can battle the fire.

Associated Press reporters at the scene said the fire had gutted the international arrivals hall, where passengers pass through immigration and retrieve their luggage.

As in many countries in East Africa, public sector services like police and fire units are hobbled by small budgets and outdated or no equipment. A British passenger, Martyn Collbeck, said he was surprised that the airport wasn’t shut down sooner so that emergency vehicles could respond.

“When I arrived there were one or two fire engines parked outside the international arrivals. It spread very fast,” said Collbeck, who had been scheduled to fly back to London on an early morning KLM flight. “There were a couple of explosions which I think were a couple of gas canisters.”

But, he added: “I would have expected more fire engines to respond faster.”

The Nairobi airport is the busiest airport in East Africa, and its closure is likely to affect flights throughout the region. – AP

Strike violence causes traffic chaos near Johannesburg airport

Three people were injured in protests by striking truck drivers in Ekurhuleni, east of Johannesburg, on Thursday morning, metro police said.

“Up to now we can say three people [have] sustained injuries following truck protests around 7am,” said Inspector Kobeli Mokheseng.

“There were calls coming in on Thursday morning that on the R21 to Pretoria, one light delivery vehicle was burned, and truckers stoned two trucks.”

He said the R21 north to Pretoria, opposite OR Tambo International Airport, was closed.

“The R24 is affected going east and, if you are on the R21 going towards Pretoria, it is affected up to Griffiths Road offramp,” said Mokheseng.

“We are diverting traffic from East Rand Mall heading to Pretoria and… directing it on to the Griffiths Road offramp.”

Traffic on the R24 was also being redirected from Barbara Road.

“No arrests have been made. Police are dealing with the situation as it is happening,” he said.

Meanwhile, wage negotiations between the Road Freight Employers’ Association (RFEA) and unions remained deadlocked.

RFEA spokeswoman Magretia Brown-Engelbrecht said the situation had not changed since Wednesday.

“We have committed ourselves to being available for further talks. Nothing has been forthcoming thus far and we shall see where we go,” she said.

“We are hopeful that between today [Thursday] and tomorrow [Friday] we can get the process going again.”

The unions involved are the SA Transport and Allied Workers’ Union (Satawu), the Professional Transport and Allied Workers’ Union SA (PTAWUSA), the Transport and Allied Workers’ Union of SA (TAWU) and the Motor Transport Workers’ Union (MTWU).

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PTAWUSA road freight co-ordinator Puncho Ndevu confirmed that the situation remained unchanged on Thursday, with unions in discussions among themselves regarding the next step forward.

About 20,000 workers in the road freight transport sector have been on strike over wages since Monday.

Unions have reverted to a 12 percent pay demand after rejecting a lower offer tabled by employers on Tuesday.

The RFEA had proposed a staggered increase of 8.5 percent effective from March, and a further 0.5 percent from September next year. – Sapa