ATNS initially said the delays were caused by air traffic controllers who were absent due to sickness or other 'personal circumstances'.
Air Traffic Navigation Services (ATNS) says operations at Johannesburg’s busiest airport, OR Tambo International, have returned to normal following several issues.
Severe delays were experienced by travellers at the airport on Sunday, with passengers taking to social media to vent their frustrations about the delays, saying they were not informed and that the delays were not communicated through the various arrival and departure information systems at OR Tambo International.
Weather to blame
Following its update on Sunday regarding operational disruptions, ATNS head of Corporate Affairs and Communications, Mphilo Dlamini, confirmed that air traffic operations at OR Tambo International Airport are normal and services are continuing as planned.
Dlamini earlier stated that the delays were initially caused by air traffic controllers who did not come to work due to sickness or other “personal circumstances”, such as family emergencies, but later said this wasn’t the case.
“The nature of aviation is such that operations should remain subject to constant close monitoring and evaluation.
“ATNS further clarifies that the flight diversions experienced yesterday afternoon were not caused by human resource constraints, but were the result of severe weather conditions, including thunderstorms, which temporarily affected safe aircraft operations within the OR Tambo International Airport airspace,” Dlamini confirmed.
ATNS reiterated that safety remains “its highest priority” and continues to work closely with airlines, airport authorities, and aviation stakeholders to ensure the safe and efficient management of air traffic.
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Persistent delays
In October 2025, The Citizen reported that the Airline Association of Southern Africa (AASA) raised concerns about persistent flight delays at several airports nationwide.
It followed the continued suspension of more than 200 instrument flight procedures by the country’s ATNS at airports nationwide.
Challenges
AASA CEO Aaron Munetsi said the suspension of flight procedures continued to disrupt airline operations and cost airlines millions of dollars in additional fuel, engine wear and maintenance, crew flight duty, flight operations support, customer compensation and reputational damage.
In March 2025, Transport Minister Barbara Creecy intervened to address ATNS challenges.
The team appointed to investigate the company identified severe shortages of air traffic controllers and flight procedure designers, outdated flight navigation procedures, unreliable communication systems and weaknesses in safety governance as cause for concern.
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