Speaker, on 16 September 2011 a new page was written in the economic transformation programme when the taxi industry entered the aviation space as Santaco Airline. A Boeing 737 Classic took to the skies from Lanseria to Bisho Airport, prompting us on board to sing Shosholoza with pride and joy.
At the launch of Santaco Airline, President Jacob Zuma said:
This is real broad-based black economic empowerment - an airline owned by the historically poor black people, providing an affordable, world-class service to the poor communities who had no access to the aviation mode of transport.
The ANC congratulates Santaco on their 10th anniversary, celebrated in Durban today. The taxi industry, with the ANC government's support, has all it needs to participate in the field of road, aviation, rail and maritime transport, and has its own bank. They have survived the most difficult conditions of the apartheid era and captured 65% of the market in public transport. They provide more than 250 000 jobs and command an annual turnover in excess of R35 billion.
Santaco Airline will reduce traffic congestion, road accidents and travelling time for poor rural communities. It will use underutilised regional airports. The eagle has landed. South Africa will never be the same again.