South African low cost airline Mango has assured customers that it was still operating as talks with government officials over its financial crisis continued. The Public Enterprises Department was supposed to divert R2.7 billion of the R10.5 billion allocated to South African Airways (SAA)’s subsidiaries, which included Mango, but the cash injection has been “delayed”. In actual fact, the South African parliament has not seen fit to agree to the diverted funds as yet. SAA did receive its funding, however.
"Mango is in constant discussions with the Department of Public Enterprises on the funding issue and I'd like to make it very clear that Mango is still operating and any development or any news to the effect will be communicated to the public as soon as information becomes available," said Mango’s Benediction Zubane.
State-owned Mango will be grounded from May 1, 2021 unless it receives funding and will remain as such until it receives funding as it is no longer able to delay payments to creditors, which include Macquarie AirFinance and Carlyle Aviation Partners. The lessors are demanding that aircraft are grounded until such time as rental payments are re-started.