WINDHOEK, Oct. 15 (Xinhua) -- Namibian private airline, FlyWestair will for the first time since independence operate a scheduled passenger flight route between Windhoek's Hosea Kutako International Airport (HKIA) and Johannesburg's O.R. Tambo International Airport.
FlyWestair announced Wednesday that the schedule will start on Nov. 2. Initially, there will be two scheduled flights per week designed to connect with various international airlines through Johannesburg.
According to FlyWestair, they will also restart direct flights to Cape Town from Windhoek on Oct. 23, consisting of two flights per week, every Monday and Friday.
"FlyWestair is delighted to be the first airline to launch the Windhoek - Johannesburg route since the beginning of national lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a 100 percent Namibian-owned airline, we are committed to play our role in restarting the economy and support the local tourism sector," said FlyWestair CEO Henri van Schalkwyk.
According to Van Schalkwyk, commencing flights again is a risky move in the current economic situation but one that FlyWestair deems critical and of national importance.
Van Schalkwyk said since the start of the national lockdown in March, the airline conducted more than 20 repatriation flights between Namibia and South Africa, Germany and Amsterdam, carrying more than 4,000 passengers.
Meanwhile, FlyWestair conducted more than 235 flights to Cape Town since it introduced its international operations to Cape Town in October 2019. Enditem
