{
  "id": 3797945,
  "title": "‘DYING SQUAD’: Flying Squad’s wings clipped — no wheels for Nelson Mandela Bay rapid response cops",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/27/dying-squad-flying-squads-wings-clipped-no-wheels-for-nelson-mandela",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-27T19:14:16.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Daily Maverick",
    "slug": "daily-maverick",
    "url": "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-08-27-flying-squad-s-wings-clipped-no-wheels-for-nelson-mandela-bay-rapid-response-cops/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Flying Squad, once the elite rapid response team of Nelson Mandela Bay's police force, now finds itself without operational vehicles, a situation that has worsened over the past nine months. A parliamentary oversight visit in November 2025 revealed the unit's dire lack of resources, with only a single-cab bakkie operational among its three BMWs, a double-cab bakkie, and a single-cab bakkie. Since then, the vehicle situation has deteriorated further, with members reporting no reliable vehicles for months at a time. This lack of vehicles has led to a significant decline in morale, with members feeling underappreciated and their work undervalued. Despite their efforts, they are often told to stay within their designated roles and cannot deploy due to a lack of vehicles. The police have acknowledged the concerns but declined to provide information on the matter, citing potential negative impacts on policing operations.",
  "summary": "The Flying Squad is supposed to be Nelson Mandela Bay’s rapid response unit. Instead, its members have no operational vehicles and are sitting on the sidelines.",
  "key_points": [
    "Flying Squad lacks operational vehicles, only one-cab bakkie operational",
    "Vehicle situation worsened over nine months, members report no reliable vehicles",
    "Lack of vehicles leads to morale decline, members undervalued and underappreciated"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}