South Africa’s aviation regulatory landscape has shifted dramatically, but the timing is raising eyebrows.
The International Air Services Council (IASC) has withdrawn its opposition to a High Court challenge brought by business group Sakeliga, effectively pulling the plug on race-linked licensing criteria for international airlines. With no remaining state opposition, and Transport Minister Barbara Creecy having previously indicated she would not contest the matter, the Gauteng Division of the High Court of South Africa is now expected to grant an unopposed order declaring it unlawful to apply Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) requirements to international air service licences.
However, this regulatory retreat comes after a landmark ownership transaction involving South Africa’s largest domestic carrier, FlySafair.
Harith Acquires FlySafair
Black-empowerment investment firm Harith General Partners and its affiliates have signed a sale and purchase agreement to acquire full ownership of FlySafair, subject to regulatory approvals, including clearance from the Competition Commission of South Africa.
The transaction, the value of which has not been disclosed, will see Harith acquire the airline through its subsidiary, Harith Aviation. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026 and will be funded through a combination of equity and debt. According to Harith co-founder and chairman Tshepo Mahloele, the acquisition will account for approximately 15% of the firm’s overall portfolio.
Harith is 30% owned by the Public Investment Corporation (PIC), a state-owned asset manager that oversees public-sector funds, including those of the Government Employees Pension Fund. As a result, the deal effectively renders FlySafair partly state-owned.
FlySafair’s Chief Commercial Officer, Kirby Gordon, has stressed operational continuity, stating that the airline will be acquired as a going concern, with its strategy, brand and leadership team remaining unchanged.
Ownership Scrutiny and Regulatory Pressure
The sale follows months of regulatory scrutiny over FlySafair’s ownership structure. South African civil aviation regulations require domestic airlines to be at least 75% South African-owned. The Air Services Licensing Council(ASLC) previously found that Irish firm ASL Aviation Holdings effectively controlled 74.86% of FlySafair through a trust arrangement, potentially placing the airline in breach of local ownership rules.
In October 2025, FlySafair secured an urgent interdict from the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria, suspending a February 2026 deadline to rectify its ownership structure pending judicial review.
Notably, negotiations with Harith were reportedly already underway before the ASLC issued its finding. Nevertheless, the transaction now provides a pathway toward resolving the ownership compliance issue, albeit one that introduces indirect state participation into the country’s most commercially successful airline.
A Question of Fairness
The juxtaposition of these developments is difficult to ignore.
On one hand, regulators are stepping back from applying B-BBEE criteria to international carriers, conceding, at least tacitly, that such requirements may lack statutory footing. On the other, a major domestic operator has undergone a significant ownership restructuring under regulatory pressure tied to nationality and control requirements.
What is clear is that South Africa’s aviation framework is in flux. For airlines, investors and lessors watching from abroad, including in the UK, the message is mixed: regulatory certainty may be improving in one domain, but ownership politics remain firmly embedded in another.
