A former senior Designated Aviation Medical Examiner (Dame) for the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) has found herself in hot water after allegedly continuing to examine and issue medical certificates despite the expiration of a valid licence to do so.
Dr Nhlanhla Sishaba’s designation is under scrutiny, said SACAA, due to ongoing investigations into alleged “improper and fraudulent conduct”.
According to the SACCA, the Civil Aviation Regulations (CARs), allows the Director of Civil Aviation to designate medical practitioners to conduct medical examinations on aviation personnel including pilots, air traffic controllers, cabin crew and flight engineers on her/his behalf, to ensure they meet the required standards for a valid licence.
Dames are then required to submit completed medical assessments with supporting medical records to the SACAA online system for verification by authority’s medical assessors.
In 2023, an enforcement action resulted in a penalty being issued to Sishaba for non-compliance. Her designation as Dame then expired on March 31, 2024, and has not been renewed pending the ongoing investigations into her conduct, the aviation authority said.
The SACAA said its online system flagged that Sishaba had continued to examine and issue medical certificates, in violation of civil aviation regulations. Under the regulations, all the certificates issued from April 1, 2024, were therefore invalid.
Investigations into alleged fraudulent conduct, identified the alleged use of “non-medical and unauthorised personnel for conducting medical assessments and filing of fraudulent and incomplete medical reports in the SACAA medical system”.
The regulator had in November 2022 launched an e-Services portal which allowed aviation operators to renew and pay for their Air Operator Certificates and other approvals online.
The SACAA’s shift to an automated system had enabled them to detect irregularities in real-time, it said. The SACAA added that its medical certification process was one of the first business processes that was automated. “There is a possibility that the doctor may be using a manual back-up system to avoid detection.
The SACAA has requested all SACAA-related documents in Dr Sishaba’s possession be immediately returned,” the aviation authority said.
SACAA director Poppy Khoza said the allegations had a direct impact on the ability of aviation personnel to perform their duties.
“We view these allegations in a very serious light as they have a direct impact on the ability of aviation personnel to perform their duties in a safe manner as prescribed by the CARs,” said Khoza.
“South Africa’s aviation sector boasts an exemplary safety record, with no fatal accidents in the scheduled airline sector in nearly 40 years.
While our investigations are continuing, we cannot ignore these findings.
Ensuring the safety of aviation services is our top priority, and we will pursue all available legal measures to resolve this issue swiftly.”
The Civil Aviation Act mandates that aviation personnel undergo regular prescribed medical assessments to ensure their health status was compatible with their roles and licences. In light of this, the SACCA said Khoza had notified known operators who used Dr Sishaba’s services and had issued a general notice to the aviation industry with further instructions.
Sishaba did not respond to requests for comment by deadline on Tuesday.
Cape Times