SAA’s plans to reduce the required amount of flying hours for its second officers will not compromise safety as some media reports have claimed, say aviation experts.
The airline has been accused of putting its passengers at risk by reducing the required flying hours for its in-flight relief or second officers from 1 500 hours to 250 as part of its Gaining Altitude programme. But SAA hit back saying that suggestions made about the introduction of the programme being a lowering of standards were “reckless and spurious”.
SAA Acting Chief Pilot, Sandy Bayne, said: “We have taken a decision to investigate the possibility of putting together a programme that will assist entrants to the airline’s Cadet Pilot Training Programme who have successfully completed the initial training. This will enable them to receive more training in-house and acquire much-needed experience in their journey towards becoming fully fledged airline pilots.” 
Bayne added that there had been no changes to the minimum requirements for first officers and that the  250 flying hours for second officers was in line with international best practice, followed by many airlines across the globe.

Marius Santos, President of the Air Line Pilots’ Association of SA, said once candidates had successfully completed their  initial cadet training they would often leave to join smaller operators as second officers to gain the required hours before applying to a bigger airline such as SAA or Comair. “What SAA is trying to do is, instead of having the cadet pilots leave to join smaller airlines, get them to stay with the airline. Cathay Pacific, Emirates and Etihad also do this,” he said.
“This airline-specific training would actually make the skies safer for passengers and not the opposite. It is a method of transformation but not at the expense of safety. By the time they become first officers the pilots will be the most thoroughly trained,” he added. 
Aviation expert and MD of Plane Talking, Linden Birns, said: “What we are seeing is the emergence of a new philosophy around the role of a modern airline pilot and ensuring that their training properly reflects the significant technological and operational advances that we’ve witnessed over the past two decades and equips them with the appropriate skills set that modern airline pilots require.”