afrol News, 8 December - The South Africa minister has declared the country as one of the safest airspace, despite yesterday’s crash of an a passenger aircraft near a road traffic highway.

Transport Minister Sibusiso Ndebele said gave the assurance that air travel and infrastructure in South Africa was still one of the safest, adding that recent crashes were isolated cases.

"We want to assure all those who make use or intend making use of air travel in South Africa that our planes and airport infrastructure are safe. There have been two isolated incidents of runway excursions in the past weeks, but there is nothing to panic about. South Africa has one of the best air safety records in the world," he said.

The assurances come amidst South Africa’s preparation for the World Cup 2010, which is expected to bring thousands of football supporters and other tourists to the country.

On Monday, a South African Airlink aircraft failed to stop on the runaway while landing at George Airport, only managing to break a few meters from a busy N2 highway.

The aircraft was reportedly arriving from Cape Town in rainy weather when it lost control of the sottopage breaks on the wet runway, breaking through the airport fence.

Reports said 33 people were evacuated from the aeroplane, with five of them having sustained minor injuries.

The South Africa Commissioner for Civil Aviation has also been reported raising a concern by the recent number of accidents or incidents involving SA Airlink. The authority has already instituted a thorough investigation on the maintenance, operating procedures and pilot training for the airline. Recently an Airlink aircraft landed on the school premises flying just over road traffic, where the pilot later lost his life.

By staff writer

© afrol News

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