Summary
- FlyNamibia plans to launch new routes to Zimbabwe, Botswana, and Angola, expanding its regional destinations and increasing tourism connectivity in Southern Africa.
- The airline will also increase its fleet through Westair Aviation and expects to introduce flights to Luanda in the near future.
- Namibia Airports Company aims to enhance connectivity and attract more airlines to the country, with plans to expand routes in Southern Africa, as well as explore connections to Europe, the Middle East, and potentially the United States and the Far East.
Namibia’s only active scheduled carrier, FlyNamibia, has announced plans to launch three new regional destinations from Windhoek Hosea Kutako International Airport (WDH). The airline’s Managing Director, Andre Compion, disclosed this on the AviaDev Insight Africa podcast. The expansion also aligns with the Namibia Airports Company’s ambitions to enhance regional connectivity.
Expanding horizons
FlyNamibia will launch flights from Windhoek to Victoria Falls International Airport (VFA) in Zimbabwe, Maun International Airport (MUB) in Botswana, and Luanda (LAD) in Angola, more than tripling its current number of regional destinations. While schedules have not been released, the new routes are expected to commence in April 2024. Compion added that the airline is now in the final phase of introducing Luanda flights.
With this expansion, FlyNamibia will also increase the number of aircraft it operates through Westair Aviation. According to Planespotters.net, the Windhoek-based carrier has four Embraer ERJ-145s in its fleet, all leased from Westair. It also expects delivery of an ERJ-135, previously operated by Air Namibia. It is important to note that the carrier is 60% owned by Westair and 40% by Airlink, and uses the latter’s 4Z code.
Photo: Gunter Nuyts | Shutterstock
The new destinations allow the carrier to increase travel in Southern Africa by connecting some of the region’s most popular tourist cities. Maun is known as the ‘tourism capital’ of Botswana, while Victoria Falls is among the most visited destinations in Southern Africa. The launch of Luanda flights could also put the carrier in the position to serve the thousands of Namibian visitors from Angola, as well as other nationalities connecting via Luanda. FlyNamibia recently launched flights between Walvis Bay (WVB) and Cape Town (CPT), its only destination outside Namibia.
Understanding Namibia’s connectivity ambitions
In another episode, AviaDev CEO Jon Howell spoke to the Namibia Airports Company (NAC) CEO Bisey Uirab to understand the country’s connectivity and aviation development ambitions. NAC manages eight airports in Namibia – two international (WDH and WBV) and six domestic. FlyNamibia is currently the only carrier servicing the domestic routes.
Through its largest and main airport in Windhoek, Namibia is connected to five destinations in Africa, one in Europe, and one in the Middle East. The routes are served by the following carriers:
- Johannesburg-Windhoek: Airlink and South African Airways
- Cape Town-Windhoek: Airlink and FlyNamibia
- Luanda-Windhoek: TAAG Angola
- Addis Ababa-Windhoek: Ethiopian Airlines
- Victoria Falls-Windhoek: Discover Airlines
- Frankfurt-Windhoek: Discover Airlines
- Doha-Windhoek: Qatar Airways
In the next five months, FlyNamibia will add a new connection to Maun, which is currently unserved. Qatar Airways operates three weekly B787 Dreamliner flights to Windhoek, but the service will be suspended from November 21. Discover Airlines operates about ten weekly flights from Frankfurt with the Airbus A330. Interestingly, the carrier’s first commercial flight with the new liveried widebody was on this route on November 11.
Photo: Discover Airlines
The Namibia Airports Company will engage various stakeholders from the business community, the tourism sector, and the government to continue marketing Namibia as a business and tourism destination, inviting more airlines and international arrivals. It will also work to maintain the current network and support the airlines serving Namibia as much as possible.
Regarding regional connectivity, Bisey Uirab stated that the NAC is looking to expand its routes and link Windhoek to Harare (HRE), Lusaka (LUN), Gaborone (GBE), and Durban (DUR) to mention a few. It also wants to add more connections to Europe, building on the strong historical links between Namibia and various European cities. The Middle East is also under consideration as an ideal location for passengers connecting to several destinations worldwide. The United States and the Far East are also in the cards, but the NAC’s focus is on Europe and the Middle East.
What are your thoughts on FlyNamibia and the NAC’s development plans? Will you be visiting Namibia soon? Please let us know in the comments!
Sources: AviaDev Insight Africa, Planespotters.net