Gqeberha’s elite Flying Squad has reportedly been reduced to one vehicle, and even that car cannot respond to emergencies because it has no tyres.
The unit is responsible for reacting quickly to serious and violent crimes across Nelson Mandela Bay.
Its duties include responding to armed robberies, hijackings, shootings and other high-risk incidents requiring an urgent police presence.
The vehicle shortage has raised fresh concerns about whether officers can reach crime scenes quickly enough in a metro facing persistent violent crime.
Only vehicle unable to operate
News24 reported that the squad’s remaining vehicle was standing without tyres, effectively leaving the specialist unit without operational transport.
The situation follows earlier warnings about the deteriorating state of the unit’s fleet.
During a parliamentary oversight visit in 2025, officials found that the Flying Squad was operating with only one ageing vehicle across Nelson Mandela Bay.
One BMW assigned to the unit reportedly had more than 300,000km on its odometer and became unusable shortly after returning from repairs.
Specialist unit under pressure
Flying Squad members are expected to provide rapid support to local police stations and respond to priority crimes.
Without reliable vehicles, officers may have to depend on transport from other units or police stations.
This can delay responses and place additional pressure on already stretched policing resources.
Parliament’s police portfolio committee previously described the shortage of vehicles and equipment within specialist units in the metro as a serious operational failure.
The crisis also affects officer morale, with members expected to confront dangerous criminals without reliable transport and equipment.
Calls for urgent intervention
The latest breakdown has prompted renewed calls for the South African Police Service to urgently provide the squad with roadworthy vehicles.
The supplied report did not provide a confirmed timeline for replacing the tyres or restoring the vehicle to service.
It also did not indicate whether additional vehicles would be permanently allocated to the squad.
Until the fleet is restored, one of Gqeberha’s most important rapid-response units may remain unable to carry out its core duties effectively.