( 4 minutes read)
· Namibia’s national carrier announced winding up of its operations due to heavy losses
· It has asked the fleet to return to the base and informed over 600 staff of its decision to close the operations. Customers who have booked the ticket in advance can claim the refund
· There are reports that the government may try to sell them to retire some of the debts and to pay compensation to the retrenched staff
Namibia’s national carrier announced winding up of its operations due to heavy losses. It has asked the fleet to return to the base and informed over 600 staff of its decision to close the operations. Customers who have booked the ticket in advance can claim the refund.
Air Namibia had failed in its multiple recovery attempts and was mostly depending on state bailouts. Shortly, the government would decide on the future course of the airlines, particularly how the fleet would be handled. There are reports that the government may try to sell them to retire some of the debts and to pay compensation to the retrenched staff. A meeting in this regard would be held of the stakeholders to thrash out the future course of action.
From Windhoek’s Hosea Kutako International Airport, the airline operated flights to South Africa, Zimbabwe, Angola, Zambia, and Botswana. It also flew to international destinations like Frankfurt, Germany and has a fleet strength of 10 aircraft including two Airbus A330s.
The airline struggled to make a profit. The airline’s request for a US$119 million bailout appeal was turned down recently. But the government underwrote a US34 million loan to keep the firm afloat. The 75-year-old airline received a total of US$477 million from the government between 1999 and 2019.
