She was briefing the media on claims that Ramaphosa and a delegation, which included Cabinet ministers, used a plane owned by the Guptas for the official visit.

Mapisa-Nqakula said government leaders' air travel was a mandated responsibility of the SA Air Force (SAAF). She said for all flight requests the first option is to consider SAAF aircraft, however, a suitable craft was not available as it was being used as a higher priority for presidential flights over the period. This resulted in the need to charter a private aircraft.

On Wednesday, it was reported that the defence department hired the Bombardier Aerospace plane through a state-managed contract with service provider ExecuJet. According to EWN, the plane is registered to Westdawn Investments, which is owned by the Gupta family. President Jacob Zuma's son, Duduzane, is also a director at Westdawn.

Statement