1time officially under liquidation

1Time was granted provisional liquidation by the High Court in Pretoria on Wednesday, the company said.

"Yes I can confirm that we have been granted provisional liquidation by the court," said spokeswoman Refilwe Masemola.

She could not give details on the liquidation process because the company was being handed over to a liquidator who would take responsibility for all communication.

1Time announced on Friday that it had applied for business liquidation, and that all of its flights had been grounded. The firm had about R320 million in short-term debt and had been in negotiations with creditors since March.

An estimated 520 workers would be left jobless by the liquidation.

The airline said passengers who had bought tickets in cash would have to wait longer to get it back, as their money was considered as cash which belonged to the company.

However, those who had used credit cards to purchase their air tickets could be refunded by the banks.

Comair CEO Erik Venter blamed Mango for 1Time's collapse, a statement that was rejected by Public Enterprise Minister Malusi Gigaba.

Gigaba said Mango, which was owned by state airline South African Airways, "did not benefit from any capitalisation or guarantee issued by its parent company".