Ladies and gentlemen, this is your pilot speaking. I would just like to let you know that I’ve been flying for more than 20 years with fraudulent paperwork.

We should arrive at our destination shortly, and thanks for choosing South African Airways.

The story of William Chandler, the senior SAA pilot who resigned earlier this year after it was discovered he had flown for more than 20 years with fraudulent paperwork, doesn’t involve a scene like that, but it does involve some mid-air drama.

Here’s the Mail & Guardian:

Although little is known about the incident, the Mail & Guardian has learnt that the incident involving Flight SA206 from OR Tambo International Airport to Frankfurt, Germany, occurred in November over Swiss airspace.

It now appears the incident was kept under wraps, which has led to employees complaining that other malfeasance was dealt with publicly.

Two well-placed SAA sources say Chandler [below], who was the monitoring pilot (co-pilot) on the trip, had the controls at the time of the incident.

…SAA was not in a position to reveal when Chandler first claimed to have an ATPL but, given that he joined the airline in 1994 he would have needed it by 1999, because the airline’s policy requires all pilots to get an ATPL within the first five years of employment. Prior to 1994, Chandler worked at SAA as a flight engineer…

The M&G was told by several sources that Chandler had previously refused to be promoted to captain, a process that would have required him to resubmit his certification.

Sorry, boss, I cannot accept this promotion as my twisted tale of lies will come crashing down.

Chandler will have earned some serious cash during his employment term, with the most junior pilots at SAA currently earning around R900 000 a year, and those in senior positions taking home as much as R6 million a year.

Now that he has been caught out, his bank balance looks set to take a beating:

Pilots are also entitled to perks such as free airfares for their extended families, whereas other SAA employees get limited free tickets for their immediate families.

[SAA spokesperson Tlali Tlali] said the airline was calculating, with a view to recovering, remuneration Chandler had earned as a result of his fraud. This is expected to be in the millions and includes the perks.

When first confronted with the accusations, Chandler denied the fraud, but resigned immediately once it became clear that he wasn’t getting off the hook.

If you’re wondering how the hell he was allowed to continue for so long, in an industry that you would expect is incredibly closely monitored, you’re not alone:

Industry insiders have questioned how the airline and the South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA), the body that issues the certification, could not have noticed that Chandler’s paperwork was suspect. Pilots are required to refresh their licences annually in a process that involves operating a simulator, physical exams and submitting their licences to an external examiner.

Besides opening a criminal case of fraud against Chandler, Tlali said SAA has tightened up its authentication and validation processes.

We’ve saved the best for last, to reward those who read through to the end.

That mid-air drama Chandler was involved in is truly odd:

…an SAA insider with knowledge of the incident but no authority to speak on record said of the flight: “There were some strange turns that the aircraft made in the air that were not understood by anybody, even in the cabin crew.

“When they landed, obviously they had to write a safety report, and apparently there was even a problem with the jet itself because of what he had done.”

The guy who has been flying for more than 20 years was so clueless that he buggered up the jet itself.

All of this makes it far easier to understand how SAA has debt that is nearing R13 billion.

[source:mg]