More than 60 South African tourists who were stranded on Phuket, Thailand in the wake of the earthquake and subsequent tsunami, were expected back in the country on Wednesday afternoon.
Ronnie Mamoepa, spokesman for the Department of Foreign Affairs, said that the bodies of the four people who died in the disaster would also be on the airplane which was expected to land at Johannesburg International Airport between 2:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.
The number killed in a mammoth earthquake and tsunami in Asian countries rose around 60,000 with tens of thousands still missing. The UN health agency warned that disease could double the toll yet again.
Mamoepa said: "The ambassador to Thailand Ms Buyi Pheto has advised the Foreign Affairs Ministry of the successful evacuation of 68 South Africans who were trapped on Phuket, Thailand..."
The evacuation mission was a joint exercise between the South African government, Netcare and Discovery.
The airplane left South Africa on Tuesday with foreign affairs officials and medical personnel on board.
Mamoepa said the Department of Home Affairs will set up an office at the airport to assist those people who have lost their traveling documents in the disaster.
"Ambassador Pheto and senior consular officials remain in Phuket to assist in tracing a number of missing people who have been reported to our mission," he said.