After a temporary three months suspension, Air Namibia will re-introduce the Windhoek – Luanda route back to its schedule.
Flights to the Angolan capital will commence on Sunday, 27 October 2019.
Air Namibia will service this route three times a week on Sundays, Wednesdays, and Fridays using an Airbus A319, offering a seat configuration of 16 Business Class and 96 Economy Class seats, and two tons of cargo space.
The service will transport passengers and cargo promoting intra-Africa trade and supporting the existing Bilateral Air Service Agreements.
Air Namibia launched operations to Luanda in 1992, shortly after independence. The route was initially served twice a week, and throughout the years the frequency grew to seven flights per week around 2014/2015.
Mr. Wimpie van Vuuren, Air Namibia’s Acting Commercial General Manager, said that the Windhoek – Luanda route was Air Namibia’s most profitable route from 1998 – 2015.
“The situation changed when the Angolan economy weakened and passenger demand for air travel declined,” Mr. Van Vuuren said. “To adapt to these economic changes, from 2016/17 Air Namibia reduced the number of flights from seven to six per week, then to five and by 2018/19 the number of flights was reduced to four per week.”
After some market analysis, a decision was taken to temporarily suspend operations during the low season (June to September) to reduce the losses of the airline.
With the high season for this market looming and holidaymakers planning to visit our neighbouring country and vice versa, Air Namibia restructured the operation to meet the current demand with the resumption of this route.
“We would like to extend our appreciation and thanks to all our corporate, leisure customers and passengers for their continued business support during this most challenging time. We also thank sincerely the travel agents and tour operators for their continuous support. As Air Namibia, our main area of focus is ensuring that we meet and exceed our customers’ expectations,” the company said in a statement.