Thousands of travellers at OR Tambo International Airport are braced to spend more hours at the airport after the Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) warned of extended queues at immigration points – it suggested that passengers arrive “earlier than usual”.
According to Acsa, the delays are caused by a technical glitch affecting the Border Management Authority’s (BMA’s) Biometric Movement Control System. Notably, the authority has since taken over the implementation of the system after the termination of its contract with Idemia, a French technology firm, on 27 August 2024.
Read more: Airports Company SA faces backlash over refuelling crisis amid calls for better communication
The Border Management Authority and Acsa recommend passengers arrive at the airport at least three hours before international flights and two hours before domestic flights, similar to the protocols during the Covid-19 pandemic. Additionally, international travellers should allow for at least an extra 30 minutes to complete the immigration process.
Acsa issued recommendations for inbound and outbound travellers:
- Plan for getting to the airport and finding secure parking if you are not being dropped off is essential. Remember that the airport has long-term parking with shuttles to the departures and arrivals entrances.
- Get to the airport early – three hours for international travellers and two hours for domestic travellers. This will give you time to check in, relax and relieve the stress of rushing to catch a flight.
- Make sure you’ve checked your airline’s terms and conditions, such as baggage restrictions, to avoid wasting time and having to join the queue to pay for excess luggage.
- Staff at security gates have been told to enforce airline rules on hand luggage, so ensure that you adhere to the weight and height restrictions.
- Take care when using headphones while waiting for a flight to board, as you could easily miss an announcement.
- If you’re uncertain of anything or need help, the airport has several information kiosks and staff in uniform able to respond quickly.
These suggestions follow the Acsa announcement on Monday, 16 December that “the Border Management Authority is experiencing extended queues at the passport control processing points at OR Tambo International Airport. The delays are due to the unresponsiveness of the Border Management Authority’s Biometric Movement Control System, which is currently not functioning as expected. This has led to longer-than-usual waiting times for passengers at the immigration points.”
BMA’s mitigation
To mitigate the impact, BMA commissioner Dr Michael Masiapato announced that, “To further minimise waiting times and to address the challenge of simultaneous flight arrivals and departures, we are working on the introduction of an early warning system.
“This system will alert our teams to instances where multiple flights are scheduled to arrive or depart at the same time, allowing us to deploy additional resources where they are most needed.
“We have increased staffing levels at critical points and peak times to enhance passenger processing. This includes deploying more immigration officials at passport control counters and ensuring that additional personnel are on standby to assist during high-demand periods. Both arrivals and departures remain busy, but are currently manageable, thanks to the swift interventions by both organisations,” Masiapato said.
The latest developments come on the heels of a recent refuelling system failure on 9 December 2024. This affected the company’s network of 483 flights and 49,429 passengers, and led to the cancellation of 31 flights. Acsa issued a statement apologising for the disruption and said that normal operations had resumed.
Read more: Flights delayed for hours at OR Tambo International after refuelling system fails
‘Inefficiency and disorganisation’
Linden Birns, MD of Plane Talking and a global crisis communications expert with more than 30 years of experience working with airlines, airports and government agencies, noted that the Biometric Movement Control System at border controls had been problematic.
“I’m not an expert on the BMA’s biometric system but am aware that its integration at border controls at the major airports has been problematic. In this instance, it’s not Acsa’s fault. One must look to the contractor that was awarded the BMA tender to design and deliver a fit-for-purpose and functioning biometric movement system with the associated software and hardware.”
However, Birns emphasised that the root cause of the delays was inadequate staffing levels at immigration checkpoints.
“It is very frustrating for travellers when they arrive at one of our airport immigration checkpoints to be confronted with a long row of kiosks, but with only a handful staffed and operating.
“Far too often this is the cause of queues, delays and frustration and it makes a poor first and last impression on visitors, be they tourists or people coming to do business in South Africa. It just shouts ‘inefficiency and disorganisation’,” said Birns.
‘Bad image’
Minister of Tourism Patricia de Lille said the delays projected a negative image of the country.
Speaking on eNCA, De Lille said, “We must not just score some own goals, like, for instance, we had with the Airports Company just recently, and now again, with the long queues at OR Tambo. I’ve raised that problem already earlier this year with the commissioner of the Border Management Authority. He assured me that by 1 June they were going to employ more people and extra people, especially at OR Tambo … at that stage, the problem was at Cape Town and at OR Tambo.’’
“So I really hope that they’re able to sort this out. It is a bad image for our country. When you arrive in the country you are excited, and just on entry, your first image of the country is that you have to stand in long queues waiting just to enter the country. So I hope that the Border Management Authority will be able to solve this…” De Lille said. DM