05 Aug 2026

Air Botswana has terminated flights to Durban and Windhoek less than a year after launch, citing low passenger numbers, aircraft groundings and crew shortages.

Answering in Parliament on Monday, Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, Mr Noah Salakae said the national carrier launched Gaborone-Durban on December 4, 2024 and Gaborone-Windhoek on November 29, 2024, after securing permits from civil aviation authorities in Botswana, South Africa and Namibia.

Both routes have since been closed. The Durban service ended on October 5, 2025 after carrying 3,432 passengers. The Windhoek service ended on August 15, 2025 with 3,061 passengers carried. 

“The flights were operated by 70-seat ATR72-600 aircraft at very low average passenger numbers per flight,” Mr Salakae said. The minister said Air Botswana has been experiencing irregular operations due to a shrinking operational fleet. 

Out of a total fleet of 6 aircraft, E170 has been grounded pending engine overhaul and a mandatory 15 000-hour maintenance check, while ERJ145 was grounded in Namibia pending engine and APU repairs   Only two were operational in July 2025 after one went for a C-check.

“Financial constraints were causing long delays to bring aircraft to an operational state,” Mr Salakae said.

The airline is also facing a pilot shortage due to high turnover. Eleven pilots resigned between January and June 2026 for reasons including better offers elsewhere and personal reasons.

Recurrent training was further delayed by the Middle East war, where ATR72-600 pilots were being trained. The minister added there was also a shortage of simulator examiners at the alternate training institution in Bangkok, which left some pilots grounded with expired licenses while waiting for slots.

On finances, Mr Salakae said the latest audited statements were for 2021/22. The airline changed auditors from Ernst and Young, 2019 to 2021, to KPMG, 2022 to 2024. Delays in subsequent audits were due to procurement of new auditors and the time needed for their first engagement.

Despite the challenges, the minister said Air Botswana had invested about P355.9 million in fleet renewal over the past five years.  “While the investment has strengthened the airline’s term operational capacity, the financial benefits have not yet been fully realised due to aircraft groundings and global supply chain constraints affecting recovery of the aviation industry following the COVID-19 pandemic,”he said.

The update followed questions from Serowe South MP Mr Leepetswe Lesedi, who asked about route authorizations, ticket sales, causes of delays and cancellations, last audited accounts, and spending on new aircraft versus profit margins. ENDS