Mystery surrounds an unattended bag that briefly halted operations at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg on Monday.
A day later the owner of the luggage is yet to be identified‚ Minister of Transport Joe Maswanganyi said on Tuesday.
Maswanganyi praised the Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) and the police for their swift action‚ which allowed scheduled flights to resume promptly.
“We are grateful for the calm and selfless conduct by passengers when Acsa officials and law enforcement agencies asked for their cooperation during the security evacuation procedure‚” Maswanganyi said in a statement.
The department said that the South Africa civil aviation sector was “efficient‚ secure‚ economically sustainable‚ and environmentally responsible”.
“South Africa’s aviation safety has been placed at position one in Africa‚ and 33 globally by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). Our audit results have risen from 83.83% to 86.71%‚” Maswanganyi said.
The statement said that law enforcement agencies were still trying to identify the owner of the unattended bag.
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