High passenger volumes at Cape Town International Airport. Picture: David Ritchie/Independent Newspapers
The Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) has requested patience and understanding from travellers as Cape Town International Airport experiences high passenger volumes.
With the festive season holiday travel period winding down and local travellers prepare to return to work, the airports management company revealed that it is currently seeing an increased number of passengers at its domestic departures.
“To minimise delays, our security checkpoints are operating at full capacity, and our airport team is on hand to assist with fast-tracking late passengers,” said ACSA.
NOTICE: High Passenger Volume at @capetownint Airport
— Airports Company SA (@Airports_ZA) January 3, 2025
Please be advised that Cape Town International Airport is currently experiencing a high volume of passengers at domestic departures.
To minimise delays, our security checkpoints are operating at full capacity, and our… pic.twitter.com/5dz9XhS8L1
At the beginning of peak travel season, which is from October 2024 to the end of March 2025, the airports’ management company announced that it was ready to welcome festive season travellers across all its airports.
Cape Town is a popular destination for international and local travellers especially during summer and the festive season.
ACSA revealed that it was expecting to handle 260 aircraft movements and 36 272 passengers at Cape Town International Airport during its peak travel week from December 16 to 22.
The company had also said that it has rolled out extensive preparations and gearing up for this high-demand period for months to ensure passengers enjoy a seamless journey.
This included focusing on bolstering staffing, optimising critical services and improving passenger flows.
ACSA had also said that the increased use of e-Gates will ensure faster processing, streamlined queues at emigration points, and reliable baggage handling systems.
However, in the week leading up to Christmas, Mpumi Mpofu, ACSA’s CEO urged international travellers to arrive at the airport at least three hours before scheduled flight's time and for domestic travellers to ensure that they arrive at least two hours before their flight time.
The announcement came after airports experienced long queues and delays, which caused frustration among travellers.
Mpofu maintained that the delays were a result of the border management system of the BMA, which experienced some problems.