Breaking: SAA 2.0 has an acting CEO

South African Airway’s (SAA’s) Chief Commercial Officer Phillip Saunder’s has been appointed as the acting chief executive of the new airline which is expected to come out of the rescue process, 

The announcement was made by the Department of Public Enterprises’ acting DG Kgathatso Thlakudi just before the vote on the business rescue plan. 

88% of creditors voted in favour of the amendments, the largest being the retention of an additional 1000 employees on a 12-month training layoff scheme.

Read: Government, unions agree to retain 1 000 more employees in new SAA

A vote on the rescue plan is underway, the results of the vote are expected at 1PM. 

Tlhakudi added that a new board would be announced in the coming days. 

“The Department in the coming days will be announcing the Interim Board of the New SAA. The interim CEO for the airline will be Phillip Saunders, who has a credible track record of leading airlines around the world, and his last position before joining SAA was at [the International Air Transport Association],” he said.

On the issue of funding, Tlhakudi said SAA coming out of this restructuring process has proven to be attractive to potential investors and strategic equity partners. 

“This has been reflected in the approaches that Government has received from local and international investors and players,” he said.

The airline will need R10.4 billion to launch in addition to the R16.4 billion that government has set aside to pay guaranteed debt over the next three years.

Read: DPE and pilots pull in different directions ahead of critical vote on SAA rescue plan

The National Treasury has recently said that there is no additional money to found SAA leaving the question of where funding will come from unanswered.

On Tuesday Thlakudi said government was in the process of concluding the appointment of a  transaction advisor to tie up the initial engagements that Government has had with prospective strategic equity partners “and not too long a time we should announce the preferred SEPs for SAA group, and its various business units”. 

“The new SAA will be a worthy partner to those that choose to support the process that is represented by the business rescue plan that is being put before the creditors committee this afternoon”. 

“We are saying to competitors, business partners, suppliers, and customers represented in this room that your patience in process that has taken 7 months so far shall be rewarded by better business going forward”