The Department of Transport has revealed that an Italian national, armed with a South African passport, tried his luck at entering the country on Wednesday.
This is despite the slew of coronavirus lockdown measures which closed points of entry into the country and grounded flights across South Africa.
In a statement explaining the incident in question, the department revealed that a private charter aircraft had landed at OR Tambo International Airport from Harare, Zimbabwe with the man in question on board:
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| Covid-19 Lockdown: Italian Man Booted Out Of SA After Trying His Luck! |
Despite his best efforts to enter South Africa, come hell or high water, the Italian man was unceremoniously booted out of the country:
"A decision was made that the passenger would not be allowed to enter the country. The passenger initially refused to leave, but with the intervention of the South African Police Service, the flight left the South African airspace at 1950Hrs, returning to Harare, Zimbabwe."
While this incident was amusing, it raised pertinent questions over the safety of SA's airspace during the lockdown. The department committed to exploring the measures in place:
"The Department, working closely with its aviation entities, is reviewing the applicable protocols to ensure that only flights with the necessary approval are allowed to enter the South African airspace. Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula has called for a full investigation into the incident and consequence management should wrongdoing be found to have taken place."
Briefly.co.za reported that Mbalula has once again amended the regulations governing public transport, this time lowering the allowed passenger capacity to 70%.
.jpg "Sona Solar Zimbabwe")
.jpg "Sona Solar Zimbabwe")
