eSwatini: eSwatini Air has finally received its Air Operator Certificate (AOC) [update]

update (01 February 2023): According to statements by Eswatini Air on Facebook, the airline still working on logistics that can only be resumed after the license (AOC) is received. We'll continue to keep you posted!

eSwatini Air, the new flag carrier of the Kingdom of eSwatini, has finally received its Air Operator Certificate (AOC). According to a posting on Facebook, the airline will revert with fares and a schedule for its routes.
If plans are not changing, eSwatini Air will initially offer direct nonstop flights between eSwatini's King Mswati III International Airport (SHO) in Sikhuphe and Cape Town International Airport (CPT) in Cape Town, King Shaka International Airport (DUR) in Durban and OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg in South Africa as well as Robert G. Mugabe International Airport (HRE) in Harare in Zimbabwe. 

eSwatini Air initially targeted the end of March 2022 to conclude the Air Operator Certificate (AOC), but than postponed it to late May or early June 2022. It than announced that services would be launched in June 2022. In May 2022, eSwatini Air said that operations are set to launch in mid-2022. In August 2022, the Royal Eswatini National Airways Corporation (RENAC) posted on LinkedIn that "the wait will soon be over".

Durban: Fourteen beaches are currently open and safe for swimming!

The eThekwini Municipality, the local government body responsible for governing and managing Durban in KwaZulu-Natal, has released lists of beaches that are currently (as of 29 December 2022) open and safe for swimming, closed for swimming and of swimming pools that are currently open to the public. According to the lists, fourteen beaches in Durban are currently open for swimming, while swimming at nine beaches is prohibited due to water quality. 28 swimming pools in Durban are currently open to the public.

Photo by Finding Dan | Dan Grinwis on Unsplash

The following beaches are open for swimming:
- operating hours 06:00 - 18:30 -

1. Point
2. uShaka
3. Addington
4. South Beach
5. Wedge
6. North Beach
7. Bay of Plenty
8. Anstey's
9. Toti Main
10. Brighton
11. uMdloti Main
12. uMgababa
13. uMhlanga Main
14. Westbrook

Beaches closed for swimming:

1. Bronze
2. Battery
3. Country Club
4. Thekweni
5. Laguna
6. Réunion
7. Warner
8. Winkelespruit
9. Pipeline 

Recreational activities other than swimming at beaches closed for swimming are allowed!  

Garden Route: Mossel Bay obtained a beach wheelchair to allow persons with disabilities to enjoy the beach!

The Mossel Bay Municipality obtained a special beach mat and wheelchair to allow persons with disabilities to enjoy Mossel Bay's beaches. The new equipment is currently only used at Santos Beach, but will be available at Mossel Bay's other four (De Bakke, Hartenbos, Klein Brak & Glentana beaches) Blue Flag beaches early in the new year. This is due to the heavier traffic during the ongoing holiday season, which is notably delaying the transport of the special beach mat and wheelchair between beaches.

Johannesburg: Massive flight delays at OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) due to "fuel issues"! [update #2]

update (29 December 2022): According to the management of OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg, operations at the airport are back to normal.

update (28 December 2022): The management of OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg is encouraging all passengers traveling today to proceed to the airport in accordance with their flight schedules. There has been a rapid reduction in the processing time for delayed flights.

Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) earlier today (28 December 2022) announced that OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) in Johannesburg is experiencing challenges with fuel supply from the fuel storage facility to the main hydrant system. This is impacting the refueling of aircrafts, so that domestic and international departures are currently experiencing delays. This left passengers waiting for hours for their flights.
Technicians are onsite and have resolved the issue. They are now monitoring the situation.
According to an update by ACSA on Facebook, the airport is succesfully clearing the backlog of flights that were scheduled to depart this morning. As far as we know, travellers at OR Tambo International Airport (JNB) have received no time frame as to when their flights will be restored. We'll keep you posted!

I have been in contact with ACSA Management & have been assured there is no fuel shortage at OR Tambo Airport but a technical issue at the storage which has been resolved.

Management apologizes for the inconvenience this might have caused; flights will return to normal schedule.

— Cde Fikile Mbalula | ANC SG (@MbalulaFikile) December 28, 2022

Cape Town: Postponement of Cape Town International Jazz Festival 2023!

The organisers of the Cape Town International Jazz Festival in Cape Town, espAfrica, have announced that the event scheduled to have taken place on 17 and 18 March 2023, has been postponed by one year. According to espAfrica, several factors have influenced the postponement, including a series of unavoidable delays and unforeseen challenges, as well as uncertainties around the future of load shedding. The 21st edition of the Cape Town International Jazz Festival is now set to take place in Cape Town on 23 and 24 February 2024.
Ticket holders, who have purchased tickets from Ticketmaster may either retain them as espAfrika will honour the cost of these ticket for the 2024 event or obtain a full refund from Ticketmaster. espAfrika added that no monies from ticket sales were passed to them and therefore the refund procedure needs to be done via Ticketmaster and not by espAfrika.

Durban: Twelve beaches are currently open and safe for swimming! [update]

update (27 December 2022): Umhlanga Main and Umhlanga Bronze beaches have been given the green light to re-open on 25 December. The decision to re-open the beaches was taken after results from the latest rounds of water testing confirmed that the water quality is at an acceptable standard.

The eThekwini Municipality, the local government body responsible for governing and managing Durban in KwaZulu-Natal, has released lists of beaches that are currently (as of 21 December 2022) open and safe for swimming, closed for swimming and of swimming pools that are currently open to the public. According to the lists, twelve beaches in Durban are currently open for swimming, while swimming at eleven beaches is probibted due to water quality. 27 swimming pools in Durban are currently open to the public.

Photo by Weyland Swart on Unsplash

The following beaches are open for swimming:
- operating hours 06:00 - 18:30 -

1. Point
2. uShaka
3. Addington
4. South Beach
5. Wedge
6. North Beach
7. Bay of Plenty
8. Anstey's
9. Toti Main
10. Brighton
11. uMdloti Main
12. uMgababa

Beaches closed for swimming:

1. uMhlanga Main
2. Bronze
3. Westbrook
4. Battery
5. Country Club
6. Thekweni
7. Laguna
8. Réunion
9. Warner
10. Winkelespruit
11. Pipeline

Recreational activities other than swimming at beaches closed for swimming are allowed!  

Zimbabwe: Zimparks increases the entrance fees for Victoria Falls National Park and the Zambezi National Park! [update]

update (30 March 2023): The new fees will become effective from 01 April 2023!

The Zimbabwe and Wildlife Management Authority (Zimparks) has announced that it will raise the entrance fees to Victoria Falls National Park and the Zambezi National Park in the area of the world-famous Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe with effect from 01 January 2023. According to news reports from Zimbabwe, the new entrance fee for Victoria Falls National Park will be US$10/person (up from US$7) for citizens of Zimbabwe, US$30/person (up from US$20) for nationals of the Southern African Development Communtiy (SADC) and US$50/person (up from US$30) for all other international visitors of the National Park. Rates for entering Victoria Falls National Park through the VIP Gate will be US$30/person (citizens of Zimbabwe), US$75/person (SADC nationals) and US$150/person (all other international visitors). The rainforest tour under moonlight will cost citizens of Zimbabwe USD15/person, nationals of the SADC US$70/person and for all other international visitors US$100/person.
The entrance fee for the Zambezi National Park will be US5/person (citizens of Zimbabwe), US$12/person (SADC nationals) and US$15/person (all other Nationalities).
Children above five years of age will pay half the adult fees. Vehicles will be charged between US$5 for small cars and US$20 for buses and lories. Foreign registered vehicles will be charged US$30 each.