The Namibia Airports Company (NAC) is in the process of setting up its formal air service development initiative dubbed "FlyWindhoek", aimed at boosting passenger traffic at Windhoek's Hosea Kutako International Airport by bringing in more international tour operators and scheduled and charter airlines. |
| Hosea Kutako Airport (PLundkvist) |
A state-owned enterprise under the Namibian Ministry of Works and Transport responsible for managing Namibia's various airports, the NAC says the FlyWindhoek programme is modelled on other successful European airport initiatives in which "stakeholders have joined forces to provide a package of incentives to help share the start-up risk of new routes."
“The model also assists to support capacity growth on existing routes and build charter airline and tour operator supported programmes through various marketing support interventions,” the company said.
Source [Windhoek Observer]
Toska Sem, General Manager of Commercial Services at NAC said there is widespread consensus that the African aviation industry is in dire need of liberalization in line with the Yamoussoukro Decision of 1999.
“Accordingly, it is a good time to remind the international airline community that Namibia is a signatory to the Yamoussoukro Decision (YD) on the Liberalization of Air Transport Markets in Africa and is open for aviation business,” Sem said.
Source [The Namibia Economist]
Sem also added that, with the first buds of growth in the African LCC industry starting to appear in Kenya and Tanzania, Windhoek would be a perfect low cost destination which "needs to be actively sold, and where enormous opportunities exist to stimulate low cost passenger growth."
Windhoek's Hosea Kutako International Airport is the country's only international airport situated 45km east of Windhoek, the capital of Namibia. It complements the airport capacity of other hubs on the Southern African region and handles over half a million passengers annually with over fourteen thousand aircraft movements. Connections are offered to Johannesburg, Cape Town, Gaborone, Lusaka, Harare, Frankfurt and Luanda (Angola).
Recent terminal building improvement has seen the some expansion and refurbishment to enhance customer experience such as public parking, vat refund facilities and retail outlets.