Waterkloof Air Force Base

Unauthorised planes risk being shot down

Anyone flying into the Waterkloof Air Force Base near Pretoria without authorisation should expect to be intercepted and escorted out or, at worst, shot down.

That is the official procedure for dealing with unauthorised aircraft.

Minister of Defence and Military Veterans Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula told Parliament in a written response released on Wednesday that there were “standard operation procedures” for intercepting non-compliant aircraft.

“Acting against non-compliant aircraft will normally be limited to escorting them out of the Waterkloof Air Force Base and, in very specific instances, may entail the aircraft being instructed to proceed to a predetermined ‘force-down’ airfield (could be a military air base) under military aircraft escort, where they would then be instructed to land and be handed over to the relevant state authorities for further processing.

“Acting against non-compliant aircraft in a lethal manner will only be considered in very extreme circumstances,” she added.

“The air force’s responsibilities are to force down non-compliant aircraft under military aircraft escort, and under exceptional circumstances we may shoot down the non-compliant aircraft.”

Mapisa-Nqakula said that, after landing, non-compliant aircraft would be handed over to relevant authorities such as the police, the SA Civil Aviation Authority, Sars, or Customs and Excise.

She was responding to questions from Cope MP Mlindi Nhanha.

The questions followed the controversial use of the Waterkloof base by the Gupta family’s wedding guests, which involved the landing of an airliner with questionable authorisation.

In that case, the aircraft was not intercepted or seized, although it was issued with a fine by the Civil Aviation Authority for not having a foreign operator permit.

The minister said air bases did not have critical zones that couldn’t be used by private aircraft.

“Military air bases are not currently registered as national key points,” she explained.- IOL

Gupta family’s use of Waterkloof ‘an insult’ – Cosatu

South Africans have been insulted by the Gupta family’s alleged misuse of government resources, Cosatu said on Wednesday.

“It is an absolute insult to the people of South Africa that private individuals can use a public facility for their social activities and that state officials should escort them,” the trade federation’s spokesman Patrick Craven said in a statement.

The Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu) along with the SA Communist Party (SACP) were reacting to claims made on Tuesday, that access was granted to the Guptas, to land an aircraft ferrying their friends and family from India, at the Waterkloof Airforce Base in Pretoria.

“There is no reason in our view that such should have been allowed as it can possibly compromise the security of our country and its sovereignty,” the SACP said in a statement.

On Tuesday, ANC spokesman Jackson Mthembu called for those who authorised the landing at the national key point to explain how they got to that decision.

“Those who cannot account must be brought to book. The African National Congress will never rest where there is any indication that all and sundry may be permitted to undermine the Republic, it’s citizens and its borders,” he said.

Earlier in the day, SA National Defence Force (SANDF) spokesman, Siphiwe Dlamini said the force was not aware of any permission granted for the Gupta family to use the base in Pretoria.

However Gupta family spokesman Gary Naidoo insisted in a brief statement that permission was obtained from the SANDF to use the base.

He said the Indian High Commission, and not the family, applied for and was granted the permission.

Attempts to confirm this with the High Commission in Pretoria were unsuccessful.

The affluent Guptas were celebrating the wedding of Vega Gupta, 23, to Indian-born Aaskash Jahajgarhia at the Sun City resort in the North West. – Sapa

Why did the Gupta family use Waterkloof Air Force Base?

The Minister of Defence, Ms. Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, must provide answers as to why the Waterkloof Air Force Base was made available for the Gupta-family and whether they will be paying for the use of the airport and what costs it amounts to,” Mr. Pieter Groenewald, the Freedom Front Plus’ chief spokesperson on Defence says.

According to Mr. Groenewald, the excuse that the Lanseria airport was not suitable for the Guptas’ aircraft is unacceptable as the Mafikeng airport is closer to Sun City and is definitely suitable for large aircraft.

“It appears that the air force are bending over backwards to accommodate the Guptas who are well known for their financing of the ANC.

“When the air force and the police are abused for personal enrichment, then it promotes corruption and the abuse of tax payer’s money.

“The minister of Police, Mr. Nathi Mthethwa, must also explain why the police was used to escort the Guptas’ friends and whether the costs will be paid from the state coffers.

It is totally unacceptable that the ordinary public is disrupted during peak-hours and that the taxpayers’ money is used to make it as comfortable as possible for the Guptas’ guests to attend a wedding,” Mr. Groenewald said.

He said that the FF Plus will be asking questions in Parliament about this issue.