If you're flying through Johannesburg's OR Tambo International Airport, it might be worth keeping a closer eye on your checked luggage. New figures released by Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia, in response to parliamentary questions from DA MP Lisa Schickerling, show the airport recorded by far the most theft cases of South Africa's three major international hubs.

Over three financial years, 2,339 criminal and security-related incidents were logged across OR Tambo, Cape Town International and King Shaka International. OR Tambo accounted for 1,487 of them, with theft making up the bulk: 1,369 theft cases, against 305 at Cape Town and 148 at King Shaka. Cape Town followed with 579 total incidents and King Shaka with 273.

The data also breaks down other categories. Cape Town and King Shaka recorded 346 baggage handling and pilfering incidents between them; at OR Tambo, these were folded into the theft figures to avoid double counting. Aviation security breaches were rare – 21 at Cape Town and 11 at King Shaka. Robberies were almost non-existent: none at OR Tambo or Cape Town, nine at King Shaka, which also logged eight vehicle hijackings at OR Tambo... wait, the hijackings belong to OR Tambo alone, two in 2023/24 and six in 2024/25, with none in the most recent year. Narcotics smuggling was overwhelmingly a Johannesburg story, with 106 registered cases at OR Tambo versus 11 at Cape Town.

There are caveats worth understanding. These numbers only capture incidents formally reported to police and registered as case dockets. Anything handled internally by airlines or airport operators, unreported theft, or intelligence that never became a case is invisible in the stats – so the true scale of baggage interference is likely higher. The figures also don't tell you your actual statistical odds of losing a bag at any given airport, just the raw volume at the country's busiest gateway.

For travellers, the takeaway is practical rather than alarming. Millions of passengers pass through these airports each year and the vast majority arrive without incident. But the numbers make a case for basic precautions: keep valuables, medication and electronics in your cabin bag, use a TSA-style lock on checked luggage, photograph your bag and its contents before checking in, and report any tampering immediately so it's formally recorded. If you land with a bag that's been opened or is missing items, file a report with both the airline and airport police right away – that dockets the incident and matters for insurance claims.

Anyone transiting OR Tambo on a long-haul connection shouldn't be put off, but a bit of vigilance – especially around checked baggage – is a sensible habit at any major airport, and clearly more so in Johannesburg than anywhere else in South Africa. With direct flights to Europe, the Americas, Asia and across the continent, OR Tambo remains the country's main international gateway; the stats are a reason to pack smart, not to stay away.

Story via The South African Travel.