***, what the fog. We hate this <3

Hey Airlink Pietermaritzburg 👋🏼

So… I’ll be late for my meeting. AGAIN. THANKS, will you be paying my bonus? I’ll be missing some KPI’s if I don’t make this meeting.

At this point, I have a genuine question: what exactly is the purpose of having an airport in Pietermaritzburg? Because every time there’s mist, the entire aviation industry seems to collectively discover that visibility is required for flying. Revolutionary stuff.

Guys. It’s Pietermaritzburg. It gets misty. This is not an unexpected natural disaster. The mist has been here before. She lives here. She pays rent.

I book the EARLY flight specifically so I can arrive on time for work. I’ve done my part. I’ve woken up at an ungodly hour. I’ve paid for the ticket. I’ve arrived at the airport. I’ve sat there half asleep.

And yet somehow, the concept of a flight actually leaving before 8am remains aspirational.

I genuinely wonder how many times my company is going to accept:

“Sorry I’m late, my flight couldn’t take off because there was mist.”

before HR politely suggests I start driving instead.

Maybe — and I’m just spitballing here — MAKE A PLAN.

You know, things like:

✈️ If you know early morning flights are regularly cancelled/delayed because of mist… STOP PRETENDING 7am FLIGHTS ARE A THING.

🌫️ If the weather at 7am is consistently unsuitable for take-off… perhaps factor that into the schedule?

🛫 Upgrade the runway/infrastructure if that’s what’s required.

📅 Or simply schedule flights from PMB after 8am and save everyone the morning ritual of arriving at the airport just to discover that Mother Nature has cancelled your itinerary.

Because booking a 6am flight from Pietermaritzburg and then being told, “Sorry, there’s mist,” is beginning to feel less like air travel and more like a subscription service to disappointment.

And before anyone says, “But it’s weather!” yes. We know. That’s literally the point.

It’s KZN. We have mist. We have rain. We have sunshine five minutes later. None of this is new information.

I just want to get to my meeting on time. That’s it. I don’t need a miracle. I don’t need a private jet.

I need the 6am flight I paid for to actually behave like a 6am flight.

Anyway, see you at the meeting… whenever Pietermaritzburg Airport decides visibility is acceptable. 🙃

Airlink: taking off when the weather permits. My career: apparently taking off when Airlink permits.