Ex-Comair CEO Exposes SAA's Controversial Scheme to Monopolize SA Skies

South African Airways (SAA), the nation's flag carrier, once orchestrated a covert operation to take down SunAir, a rival airline, as detailed by former Comair CEO Glenn Orsmond in his book "Crash And Burn – A CEO’s crazy adventures in the South African airline industry.” The plot, which would see SAA financially benefiting from Sun Air's demise, unraveled in a dramatic fashion, proving to be a cautionary tale of corporate strategy gone awry.

Orsmond, no stranger to the aviation battlefield with leadership roles at both Comair and 1time, chronicles this dark chapter from SAA's past in his narrative that spans a turbulent thirty years of South African airline history. In a rather frank disclosure, he details how SAA sought to eliminate SunAir from the competition by buying out its black economic empowerment (BEE) shareholders for R50 million—a move meticulously crafted to take control and push Sun Air toward liquidation.

The strategy involved a carefully laid out domino effect; post-acquisition, the liquidation of Sun Air would allow SAA to recover its investment while securing increased market share without Sun Air in the skies. The plan counted on a win-win outcome for all parties involved. The BEE shareholders stood to clear their bank debt and gain a substantial profit, Safair was to be compensated and promised an aircraft lease arrangement, the Sun Air managing director was offered a plum job, and Comair expected to recoup its investment losses through a potential market boost.

But the devil, as they say, is in the details—and the mismanagement of those details precipitated the plan's failure. The haste to execute led to prematurely halting Sun Air's operations without requisite legal procedures or board consultations, a blunder that proved fatal to any hopes of the airline's revival.

In no time, SAA and Comair swooped in on Sun Air's customer base, converting loyalty program members to their own with aggressive marketing and offers. Meanwhile, the lack of a cooperative liquidator led to an investigation into the liquidation's legality, which revealed the entire scheme through an accidental exchange of incriminating documents.

SAA, cornered by evidence and on the threshold of a potentially damaging legal battle, chose to settle. Rumors suggest the payout was sizable, benefiting all creditors and staff—but at the expense of the South African public, who were witness to yet another unsavory episode in the national carrier's storied existence.

The ramifications of this failed corporate coup extend beyond financial loss. It reflects on the ethics of business practices and the power plays that overshadow the competitive landscape in South African aviation. Orsmond, through his account, not only highlights the fragility of the airline industry but also the responsibility organizations bear towards lawful and fair competition.