The Johannesburg High Court has found against the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) on a legal technicality involving two ongoing cases filed by CemAir (5Z, Johannesburg O.R. Tambo) and its CEO, Miles van der Molen, against the regulator following the airline's grounding in 2018 and 2019.

The September 5, 2023, judgement concerns two related civil cases from 2021 (cases 57741/2021 and 57742/2021), in which CemAir and Van der Molen are suing the regulator for nearly ZAR170 million rand (about USD9 million) in damages in connection with the grounding of the CemAir fleet in 2018, and 2019, and alleged defamatory statements on the SACAA website related to the grounding. CemAir's case is based on an alleged breach by the CAA of its duty of care towards the airline and includes a claim against airworthiness inspector Simphiwe Salela.

The latest judgement relates to legal aspects of the case, in which the court dismissed exceptions brought by the SACAA regarding the application of the Institution of Legal Proceedings Against Certain Organs of State Act.

The backstory to the case is as follows:

In February 2018, the SACAA withdrew Certificates of Airworthiness (CoA) for 12 of the carrier's aircraft after an audit revealed they were cleared for service after maintenance by unqualified personnel. The airline said the dispute was a matter of paperwork compliance. In December 2018, the regulator suspended CemAir's Part 121 and 135 air operator's certificates (AOC).

The airline's appeal lodged with the Director of Civil Aviation (DCA) was dismissed in January 2019. Further appeals to the Civil Aviation Appeal Committee (CAAC) were heard in March and April 2019, and these were successful.

The airline asserts that the SACAA violated its statutory obligations by suspending CemAir's business operations without proper basis or due process, grounding the entire fleet despite the investigation focusing on a single aircraft, failure to adhere to procedures outlined in the Civil Aviation Act concerning appeal processes, and denial of the opportunity for the airline to make representations. CemAir further alleges arbitrary, biased, bad faith, and unfair decision-making by the SACAA, which led to damages estimated at ZAR130 million (about USD7 million).

Additionally, CemAir seeks compensation of ZAR40 million (USD2.1 million) for alleged defamatory articles published on the SACAA website. Van der Molen's legal action is based on statements made by the SACAA in a press release, which accused him of dereliction of duty in a prior incident.