sa express employee magazine | july 2014
Ringing in 2015
contents
03 CEO Letter 04 Festive Giving 06 ICAD 2014 08 Gaborone Airport 10 World AIDs Day Pledges
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A.I.D.S.
&THE REDRIBBON ICON
11 Letters 12 Upcoming Events
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CEO Letter Dear colleague s Happy New Ye ar! This year w e are turning us as we dive 21; a new jour fully into our 20 ney beckons /2 0 strategy and im initiatives. It ’s plement our co time for us to go st-cutting full steam ahea in order to ensu d with our deve re that we have lo pm ent plans a financially st In the last 20 able and self-fu years, SA Expr nd in g airline. es s has made a Africa’s econom significant impa y by connecti ct on South ng secondary main econom cities and econ ic hubs of Joha om ie s to the nn es burg, Cape To airline industry wn and Durba is envisaged to n. The local grow, with new domestic marke airlines enteri t. Undoubtedly ng th e growing so me of these ne SA Express’ pa w entrants will ssenger base. be targeting We welcome th is competition because it will harder to stay mean that we in the game an will need to w d to remain th continue to em ork that much e ai rline of choice brace our core for our passen values which in entity we neve gers. Let us clude Safety Fi r compromise rst, which is a on, no matter va that all of the lue that as an what! We mus customers we t continue to fly for are ackn be lie ve As at the Qua and ensure ow ledged as our rterly Staff Upd most importan ates at Head O t Town, I will be in vestors. ffice, Bloemfo reaching out to ntein and, mos all of you to pr t company and re cently, Cape ovide more in the progress w formation abou e are making t th situation. e state of our towards stabili sing our finan cial and operat Let us continue ional to work towar ds a stable and year yet! sustainable airl ine. Let’s make 2015 our best Sincerely Inati
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expresso | january 2015
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company news
Festive Giving In November 2014, staff members in every station were challenged to give to a worthy cause. Head Office staff were urged to pledge and select a needy child from a list and to give them each a pair of school shoes, snacks or sweets and a motivational note. The needy children were from Sithand’izingane Care Project, a charity based in Brakpan, Gauteng. On 11th December the CEO, Inati Ntshanga; EXCO members Dave Allanby, Kgatile Nkala and Brian van Vyk; as well as other staff members who volunteered to attend the handover, were greeted with singing from the children. Members of the Care Centre’s board were also present and they told the story of how and why the centre was started. The centre’s manager, Thembi Aphane, was the programme director and conducted proceedings smoothly. Four talented young ladies treated the audience to a Marimba performance, followed by three Michael Jackson impersonators dancing slickly to his music. Also part of the entertainment was a performance from a troop of gumboot dancers. Thingo from Fingo, a children’s mascot, also made an appearance which nearly caused a stampede when the children rushed to take a picture with him. The CEO commented: “We are pleased to be making a
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humble contribution towards making this day special for those children affected by the devastating pandemic of HIV/ Aids. We are a caring organisation and this is part of our CSI programme to make an impact in the Ekurhuleni community. But today is not about long speeches, it’s all about the children and they should be celebrated.” When the EXCO members read out the names of the gift recipients, the faces of the children lit up and you could see how much this really meant to them. To end off the event, there was dancing from the “Sarafina” dancers.
Outstations Walvis Bay staff members also conducted a charity drive on 11th December and spent the day with children from the Walvis Bay Kids Shelter. It was a wonderful experience and the members can be commended for their dedication to making the event a resounding success. “We would like to thank the leadership of SA Express for this initiative and for allowing us to be part of it,” said Neil Van Wyk. He also sent a quote about true giving: “The true measure of giving is giving to someone who is in no way able to reciprocate the gift.”
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company news
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company news
SA Express Made a Difference at ICAD 2014 Retshidisitswe (Tshidi) Zitha and Sanele Shongwe are two top mathematics and science Grade 12 learners who were given an opportunity through SA Express to attend the International Civil Aviation Day (ICAD) hosted by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). ICAD is globally commemorated every year, on 7th December. This year, Kimberley in the Northern Cape played host to this auspicious occasion. The two students arrived at OR Tambo International Airport on 5th December accompanied by CSI, Events and Sponsorship Co-ordinator, Boitumelo (Tumi) Tlala. This was Sanele’s first time out of his township and for both of them, it was their first time on a plane and the first time they were leaving Gauteng. They had lunch at Wimpy while waiting for their flight. As first time travellers, the two students we excited to board the SA Express plane. Day 1: 5th December 2014
On arrival at Kimberley Airport, Tumi and the two students drove through town and headed to the Protea Hotel, located right next to Kimberley’s Big Hole. They checked-in and proceeded to their rooms. They then went on a site visit to the historical town right next to the famous Big Hole. They then had dinner with delegates from the Department of Transport, TETA and other ICAD exhibitors. Day 2: 6th December 2014
Tumi, Tshidi and Sanele had breakfast at the hotel with the other delegates and then proceeded to the airport where a mini air show took place. Later that day, two of our Cadet Pilots, Moabi Ntlhaile and Oyama Maomela, arrived at the airport to meet with Tumi and the two students. They then proceeded to the exhibition hall where various companies – ACSA, SAA, The National Defence Force, TETA, ICAO and DENEL – were showing students from the area the types of career opportunities available in aviation. Sanele and Tshidi’s interests were peaked and they learned about
bursaries and application processes for further studies. Before they proceeded to dinner Tshidi and Sanele had a swim in the Protea Hotel borehole pool. Day 3: 7th December 2014
The main day of ICAD started off with an early breakfast for the group who then proceeded to the main venue at the airport where the main air show was to take place. The students were then assigned a chaperone who took them around to the various stalls where they received goodies and pamphlets on various career opportunities. A delegation of government officials, which included Department of Transport, Deputy Minister, Sindisiwe Chikunga, were present and walked around the stalls before proceeding to the air show which included various acrobatic tricks which got everyone excited. The main event was a lunch held especially for the children from the various schools in and around the area. Speakers from various institutions and government bodies spoke about the career opportunities that are available in aviation. Day 4: 8th December 2014
The two students were fortunate enough to meet Generations actor, Patrick Shai, at breakfast and each took a picture with him. The weekend culminated with a superb flight back home on the CRJ 200. It is these kinds of events which help students to realise their dreams and to gain perspective outside of their hometown environment. It is what SA Express CSI and Sponsorship initiatives are all about. Before the Air show and Aviation Career Exhibition, Sanele wanted to be a mining engineer. He now feels that being a pilot would be a great opportunity for him to realise his dream of touching the sky. Tshidi is determined to be a town planner but her interest in aviation is now peaked and she’ll definitely look at pursuing specific careers in the aviation field.
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company news
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expresso | january 2015
gaborone
company news
Name of station: Gaborone, Botswana (GBE) Years in operation: Since 1998 (16 years) Number of staff employed: We have a staff compliment of 28 which is made up of four people in the Sales Office in town and 24 people at the airport office. Operational functions (what happens at the station): We have two offices, one in town and one at the airport. In the town Sales Office we do reservations and ticketing. Over and above the normal airport operations of checkingin passengers, as well as receiving incoming ones, the airport office also does sales and ticketing, especially when the Sales Office in town is closed on Sundays and public holidays. What makes your station unique? GBE station is unique in that although Botswana is a very small market where everyone wants a piece of the small cake, we have remained one of the most profitable stations in the company, despite competition from two other airlines (Air Botswana & SA Airlink). What is the most challenging thing you experience at your station? Well, every station experiences some hiccups in its daily operations which also happens at GBE. We have our fair share of those days when everything seems to go wrong! Such as when flights are delayed and we end up running around looking for a Plan B, with limited other options to
choose from. It can be quite frustrating when, for example, we have to re-schedule our customer’s itineraries with costs involved like booking them into hotels, etc. What do you hope to see happening in the future for your station? I hope to see SAX continuing to be seen as the number one airline of choice in the market, which offers the most cost effective and popular flights on the GaboroneJohannesburg route with a larger share of at least more than 60 % of the market. Also to improve on our OTP by at least achieving more than 90 % at any given time. I would also like to see us expanding our current route network with direct flights to Durban and Cape Town. With all this we will definitely be in line with the company’s vision of being a world class regional airline with an extensive footprint in Africa. Anything you’d like to tell us about your station? I have a wonderful team that is dedicated and striving by all means to adhere to the company’s core values. Obviously there are bound to be glitches here and there in the daily operations, but we strive to improve and work on areas where we fall short. I am proud to say that I have team members who have been with the company since 1998 when SAX started its operations in Botswana. I am slightly more than a year old in the company but they have made me feel like I have been working with them for many years now!
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company news
A.I.D.S.
&THE REDRIBBON ICON Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipis cing elit. Aenean commodo ligula eget dolor. Aenean massa. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. Donec quam felis, ultricies nec, pellentesque eu, pretium quis, sem. Nulla consequat massa quis enim. Donec pede justo, fringilla vel, aliquet nec, vulputate eget, arcu. In enim justo, rhoncus ut, imperdiet a, venenatis vitae, justo. Nullam dictum felis eu pede mollis pretium. Integer tincidunt. Cras dapibus. Vivamus elementum semper nisi. Aenean vulputate eleifend tellus. Aenean leo ligula, porttitor eu, consequat vitae, eleifend ac, enim. Aliquam lorem ante, dapibus in, viverra quis, feugiat a, tellus. Phasellus viverra nulla ut metus varius laoreet. Quisque rutrum. Aenean imperdiet. Etiam ultricies nisi vel augue. Curabitur ullamcorper ultricies nisi. Nam eget dui. Etiam rhoncus.
World AIDS Day Pledges On 1st December 2014, staff gathered in the Platinum Boardroom at Head Office to honour people affected by- and infected with HIV/AIDS. Staff members in attendance sat around the boardroom table to watch different videos of people affected by this epidemic. After the viewing, staff members wrote their own pledges of support as seen below:
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letters a long ve had in ts we ha h ig fl ed for is st n e ss f the b e recog o re b p e x to n E s o A d s S e a e ne Dear d it w believe sh cently an ath and I ondon re n L ij a st B a E e ll in Lize down to mployee We flew mazing e a n a e e v a d h attitu . time. You rvice and se le b a v lie her unbe rweg Regards Peter He ons and b ib G a c Eri
Dear SA Expr ess The day befo re flying from Durban to Za daughter, Jess mbia to be w ica, had just fin ith my partne ished matric the plug on th r, my beautif and her boyf eir relationshi ul 18 year ol rie nd of one-and-ap. He did it in d and rejected half years de such a nasty . I didn’t wan cided to pull an d ru th t to leave her le ss w our world ha ay , le aving her all and she didn d fallen out. alone, lonely ’t want me to go as we felt On arriving at like the bottom the airport, of the ground st very upset an aff were so fr d offered us iendly and co both kind w Mandy the ai ul d see that w ords of supp r hostess, w e were both ort and conc ith her beau ern. No soon so welcome tiful smile an er had I boar on board whi d w on de ded, ch rf ully friendly helped lessen daughter. Sh nature, mad the pain and e went out of e m gu e ilt feel he I was experie r way to mak Everything ra e sure I was ncing at dese n smoothly, ok rti an ng d my w we left on tim ell taken care than expected of. e and as a hu which allowed ge bo nus we arriv me to contac I can’t wait to ed half an ho t my daughter give her the ur earlier to make sure same experie year before sh she was ok. nce of flying e starts her st w ith ud m ies at Tuks to e back to Za Thanks to SA mbia in Janu become a ps Express, it’s ary next ychologist. my third trip forward to ou to Zambia an r next trip! d it only gets better each time. I look Kind Regards Leora
Town flight to Cape th and slick oo sm party a e r fo ett gratitude y bachelor d planned m s my sincere ha es pr ey ade ex th m d as to , an e lik d helpful bridesmaids I would just so friendly an rise from my e rp er su w a aff as st w t fligh ted! Your recently. This was very exci (I wish I dless to say, I ee N n! w To k in. The lady in Cape unter to chec co e th to d. te ht e exci t straig me even mor – what a joy! Airport, I wen , thank Bram Fischer s and laughter at ke g jo in riv ith w ar for a flight. So t n gh Upo d off my fli n checking in te he ar w st r e) ne m an na m her friendly remembered ted in such a fantastic one. that I am gree press such a Ex en SA oft t ith no w ’s e It my experienc u for making you. Thank yo
Good day
Regards ide An Excited Br
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Upcoming events:
January 2015
Back-to-school drive
31 January 2015
J&B Met
23rd – 25th February 2015
Meeting Africa Tourism Conference
st
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