The Namibia Airports Company (NAC) says it is pursuing new regional and international air routes to strengthen operations following Air Botswana’s suspension of the Windhoek-Gaborone service.
NAC spokesperson Dan Kamati says the company’s operations across six African countries, excluding Botswana, and three European destinations provide enough resilience to absorb the cancellation of a single route.
Air Botswana recently cancelled the Gaborone-Windhoek route as part of broader restructuring and route optimisation measures.
The route was introduced in October 2024 before being suspended in August 2025.
Kamati says the NAC remains positive about restoring direct connectivity between the two countries.
“We are looking forward to the Edelweiss connection between Windhoek and Zürich, which lands on 1 June. We will continue working with authorities in Botswana towards direct connectivity between Windhoek and Gaborone sooner rather than later,” he says.
He says future collaboration between Namibia and Botswana on a proposed joint airline could further accelerate those efforts.
Kamati acknowledges that the route suspension would affect tourism and business travel between the two countries, but notes that travellers can still connect through Johannesburg and Victoria Falls.
He says booking trends for the upcoming Windhoek-Zürich route are promising, with the NAC also exploring cargo opportunities linked to the service.
“Our economic forecasts suggest that this flight alone will add 3% growth to the hospitality sector,” he says.
Ahead of the Aviadev 2026 conference in Gaborone next month, Kamati says the company is targeting another European destination and an additional Southern African Development Community route within the next 12 months.
The company is also expanding its cargo operations through planned warehousing facilities at Hosea Kutako International Airport, Walvis Bay International Airport and Lüderitz Airport to support imports and exports through NAC airports, which handled goods worth N$42 billion during the 2024 financial year.
Kamati says the cargo expansion strategy, together with emerging oil and gas opportunities, positions the airports company for growth over the next five years under its recently approved integrated strategic plan.
