03 Jul 2022

Fastjet FN8901 on Thursday touched down in Maun on its first-ever trip to launch the Victoria Falls-Maun route, a development described by many as a game-changer.

When it landed at 11:25am, Maun Airport, it was greeted with excitement and enthusiasm by many who had come to witness the latest development.

The Victoria Falls-Maun route will be operational on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.

“Today we witnessed Fastjet’s first flight within the KAZA trans frontier conservation area connecting two unique and breath-taking destinations,” said Fastjet commercial officer, Ms Vivian Ruwuya at the inaugural landing ceremony, adding that the new route would provide unprecedented value and convenience to tourists exploring the beautiful KAZA region. 

She expressed hope that the new route would be a catalyst in promoting tourism collaboration between Victoria Falls and Maun since tourism contributed immensely to the development of economies. 

She said tourists would be spoilt for choice when they visit Botswana and Zimbabwe as they would be able to explore Tsodilo, Moremi Game Reserve, Makgadikgadi pans, Okavango Delta in Botswana and Victoria Falls, Lake Kariba, Great Zimbabwe and Matopos National Monuments in Zimbabwe. 

She said Fastjet Zimbabwe believed in the power of collaborations by working closely with stakeholders in the travel and tourism industries. 

Ms Ruwuya revealed that Maun was the fourth destination they had connected Victoria Falls to after Harare, Johannesburg, and Kruger Mpumalanga. 

The chief executive officer of Civil Aviation Authority of Botswana (CAAB), Dr Bao Mosinyi thanked Fastjet, government of Zimbabwe and its tourism industry for facilitating the new route. 

He stated that due to the unprecedented outbreak of COVID-19 the airspace traffic in Botswana declined by 96 per cent. 

He was delighted that as air traffic was being restored such companies as Fastjet were introducing new routes . 

“When we look at growth post-COVID-19, most of us in Africa look at international airlines, but I believe regional growth is what would help us grow as a continent, hence we need to promote more of that,” he said. 

Dr Mosinyi expressed hope  that the Fatsjet story would be an inspiration to many as the airline had collaborated with Air Botswana for ground handling. 

The CEO said Maun Airport had gone through a facelift to decongest the terminal so as to attract new airlines to Maun and encourage business growth in Botswana. 

Fastjet is an airline operator initially intended to connect major cities in Zimbabwe and South Africa.

On other issues, Dr Mosinyi dismissed allegations that CAAB gave priority to Air Botswana over airlines from outside Botswana when awarding routes. 

“We regulate Air Botswana just like we regulate any other airline and I would like to tell Fastjet Airline that you are on equal footing with Air Botswana,” he said.

He further explained that the airports underwent a safety and security audit last year, which exercise’s recommendations effective implementation stood at 75.9 per cent, which he said was a satisfactory performance. Ends