Hosea Kutako upgrade a top priority
Upgrading Hosea Kutako International Airport has been made a top priority for government spending.
The Namibia Airports Company yesterday confirmed that no other airports would be upgraded before the international airport's revamp.
The NAC also briefed works and transport minister John Mutorwa on the status of all the national airports under its management.
NAC board chairperson Rodgers Kauta said the company would first focus its attention on upgrading Hosea Kutako, which is responsible for generating 95% of the company's revenue.
The NAC manages eight airports in Namibia.
“The most important airport is Hosea Kutako and therefore the board has decided to focus our capital spending on Hosea, which is our revenue-generating airport,” said Kauta.
He said the company would submit long-term plans for the upgrade to Mutorwa by the end of May.
He said one of the strategic priorities for the company was to improve revenue growth by 10% per year to fund the operational budget and execute N$662 million worth of capital projects.
According to him the total passenger traffic for Namibia was 1.24 million last year, of whom 421 255 were international passengers, 578 417 were regional passengers and 241 935 domestic.
In 2016, total passenger traffic was 1.072 million, with 284 251 being international passengers.
The total aircraft movements at airports in Namibia were 54 024 last year, of which 4 768 aircraft movements were international and 13 638 were regional.
In 2016 the total movements of aircraft were 44 397, including 3 312 international aircraft movements and 28 416 regional aircraft movements.
Kauta stressed the importance of Hosea Kutako, saying that it accounted for 938 499 passengers and 17 306 aircraft movements last year.
According to him, these numbers are expected to increase with more agreements that have been signed with airlines to fly to Namibia. Airlines flying to and from Hosea Kutako currently include Air Namibia, SAA, SA Air Link TAAG, Condor, British Airways, Comair, Qatar Airways, KLM, Ethiopia Airline and Eurowings.
According to Kauta the annual passenger handling for Hosea is 250 000. The airport is ranked a Category 9 airport in terms of rescue and fire fighting capabilities. It has 608 parking bays.
In comparison Namibia's other international airport, Walvis Bay, received 5 250 aircraft movements last year with 119 664 passengers. The annual passenger handling for the airport is 657 000. It has 140 parking bays. Only Air Namibia and SAA Express fly to the airport.
Kauta further elaborated on the financial performance of the NAC and said its total revenue at the end of this financial year was N$362.3 million while its total expenditure amounted to N$301.7 million. It made a profit of N$60.5 million.
The majority of the company's revenue came from passenger fees, which amounted to N$221 million, while landing fees contributed N$44.1 million and aircraft parking fees a mere N$5.6 million.
Other revenue included motor vehicle parking, handling fees, interest and others.
Personnel costs made up the majority of the expenses at N$138 million, followed by administration costs at N$92.5 million. Other expenses included repairs and maintenance, depreciation and the board of directors.
Security audit
With regard to the upcoming International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) security audit for Hosea Kutako in November, Kauta said that the company would increase its staff by 115 employees to address security requirements at the international airport.
The NAC has a staff component of 348 permanent employees, which will increase to approximately 478 employees this year.
He added that an agreement would be entered into with the Namibian Police for security provision at the country's airports, especially Hosea Kutako.
Kauta said an agreement had been reached with Air Namibia on monthly repayments to reduce the N$300 million it owes the NAC.
Acting NAC CEO Aochamub added that although Air Namibia was responsible for 50% of passenger traffic in the country, the airline could not be treated different than others.
“If we treat Air Namibia differently all other operators will demand the same treatment. We are probably more lenient towards Air Namibia because we know that they have inherited historic debt,” he said.
ELLANIE SMIT
The Namibia Airports Company yesterday confirmed that no other airports would be upgraded before the international airport's revamp.
The NAC also briefed works and transport minister John Mutorwa on the status of all the national airports under its management.
NAC board chairperson Rodgers Kauta said the company would first focus its attention on upgrading Hosea Kutako, which is responsible for generating 95% of the company's revenue.
The NAC manages eight airports in Namibia.
“The most important airport is Hosea Kutako and therefore the board has decided to focus our capital spending on Hosea, which is our revenue-generating airport,” said Kauta.
He said the company would submit long-term plans for the upgrade to Mutorwa by the end of May.
He said one of the strategic priorities for the company was to improve revenue growth by 10% per year to fund the operational budget and execute N$662 million worth of capital projects.
According to him the total passenger traffic for Namibia was 1.24 million last year, of whom 421 255 were international passengers, 578 417 were regional passengers and 241 935 domestic.
In 2016, total passenger traffic was 1.072 million, with 284 251 being international passengers.
The total aircraft movements at airports in Namibia were 54 024 last year, of which 4 768 aircraft movements were international and 13 638 were regional.
In 2016 the total movements of aircraft were 44 397, including 3 312 international aircraft movements and 28 416 regional aircraft movements.
Kauta stressed the importance of Hosea Kutako, saying that it accounted for 938 499 passengers and 17 306 aircraft movements last year.
According to him, these numbers are expected to increase with more agreements that have been signed with airlines to fly to Namibia. Airlines flying to and from Hosea Kutako currently include Air Namibia, SAA, SA Air Link TAAG, Condor, British Airways, Comair, Qatar Airways, KLM, Ethiopia Airline and Eurowings.
According to Kauta the annual passenger handling for Hosea is 250 000. The airport is ranked a Category 9 airport in terms of rescue and fire fighting capabilities. It has 608 parking bays.
In comparison Namibia's other international airport, Walvis Bay, received 5 250 aircraft movements last year with 119 664 passengers. The annual passenger handling for the airport is 657 000. It has 140 parking bays. Only Air Namibia and SAA Express fly to the airport.
Kauta further elaborated on the financial performance of the NAC and said its total revenue at the end of this financial year was N$362.3 million while its total expenditure amounted to N$301.7 million. It made a profit of N$60.5 million.
The majority of the company's revenue came from passenger fees, which amounted to N$221 million, while landing fees contributed N$44.1 million and aircraft parking fees a mere N$5.6 million.
Other revenue included motor vehicle parking, handling fees, interest and others.
Personnel costs made up the majority of the expenses at N$138 million, followed by administration costs at N$92.5 million. Other expenses included repairs and maintenance, depreciation and the board of directors.
Security audit
With regard to the upcoming International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) security audit for Hosea Kutako in November, Kauta said that the company would increase its staff by 115 employees to address security requirements at the international airport.
The NAC has a staff component of 348 permanent employees, which will increase to approximately 478 employees this year.
He added that an agreement would be entered into with the Namibian Police for security provision at the country's airports, especially Hosea Kutako.
Kauta said an agreement had been reached with Air Namibia on monthly repayments to reduce the N$300 million it owes the NAC.
Acting NAC CEO Aochamub added that although Air Namibia was responsible for 50% of passenger traffic in the country, the airline could not be treated different than others.
“If we treat Air Namibia differently all other operators will demand the same treatment. We are probably more lenient towards Air Namibia because we know that they have inherited historic debt,” he said.
ELLANIE SMIT
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