Chief Executive Officer of Mango Nico Bezuidenhout revealed the precautionary measures taken by the airline with the current coronavirus outbreak.
“At Mango, we understand the key role that airlines need to play in preventing the spread of pandemics like Covid-19. As stewards of travel, we take this responsibility extremely seriously and always strive to ensure that our passengers can travel unhindered and stress-free,” he said.
Bezuidenhout said passenger’s safety was paramount. He said the airline has reviewed and reiterated its already stringent safety controls for communicable diseases.
“This helps us identify red flags and look at how we can address them. This will be found in all cabin and emergency in-house documentation.
“We know that hygiene lies at the centre of prevention, so over and above the personal hygiene requirements we have of our flight crews, we have increased our aircraft cleaning efforts and are currently developing a passenger awareness campaign.
“From an aircraft perspective, all our planes are cleaned according to strict Boeing specification and are fitted with a HEPA (High-Efficiency Particulate Air) filter, which filters out recirculated air onboard each plane to remove airborne particles. HEPA filters are also used in hospitals to provide patients with clean air,” he said.
Bezuidenhout said Mango leadership and technical teams were in the process of formulating extra precautionary measures to ensure that passengers were not only safe but feel comfortable and reassured during this time.
He added: “As a proudly South African airline, we will continue working closely with the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), the Department of Health, Port Health, ACSA and the CAA to ensure that we comply with all best practices and regulations set out in the public’s interest. We are ready to comply with any requests from these entities if increased precautionary procedures or processes are required.
“For passengers, we ask that you stay alert, wash your hands thoroughly, know the health status of those around you, and most importantly, don’t panic.”