Air ambulance baffles IPC

The Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) has questioned the government’s decision to convert an ageing Learjet into a public air ambulance, warning that the aircraft could be costly to operate and difficult to deploy in remote areas.

The criticism comes days after Vice President Lucia Witbooi officially inaugurated the service at Eros Airport in Windhoek, describing it as an important intervention to improve access to emergency medical care for people living far from referral hospitals.

Reacting on Friday, IPC shadow minister of works and transport Nelson Kalangula questioned the suitability of the Learjet 31A, registration number V5-NAG, arguing that its operational requirements could undermine the government’s objective of providing timely emergency evacuations.

Kalangula said the aircraft was no longer in production and had reportedly been earmarked for sale by GATS more than a decade ago because of rising operating costs, spare-parts shortages and expensive maintenance.

“Transforming a jet-engine aircraft into a functional air ambulance is far more complex than fixing a medical stretcher inside a cabin,” he said.

He questioned the aircraft’s projected hourly operating costs, fuel consumption, turbine maintenance requirements and the availability of certified spare parts, arguing that these could place an unnecessary financial burden on taxpayers.

“It is important to ask what the projected hourly flight operational cost of this aircraft to the taxpayer is and how this was deemed a prudent use of state resources,” Kalangula said.

A central concern raised by the IPC is the proposed use of Alouette III helicopters to ferry patients from remote locations to airstrips where the Learjet can land.

Kalangula argued that the jet requires long, paved runways and specialised firefighting services, making it unsuitable for rural gravel airstrips and remote settlements.

He described the proposed combination of the high-speed jet and the Namibia Defence Force’s single-engine Alouette III helicopters as an operational mismatch.

“By the time an Alouette III is prepped, deployed and lands at a secondary strip to transfer a patient into a Learjet, critical hours during the ‘golden hour’ of medical intervention are lost to complex logistics,” he said.

He also questioned whether Namibia’s airfield infrastructure was sufficiently developed to support the service, citing concerns about runway maintenance, aviation fuel availability, night-operation lighting and emergency response facilities.

“An air ambulance system is only as effective as the ground infrastructure supporting it,” Kalangula said.

He maintained that airstrips with 24-hour operational lighting, certified aviation fuel, proper runway maintenance and emergency response services remained limited across Namibia’s 14 regions.

During the launch, health minister Esperance Luvindao clarified that the air ambulance would not be available to every patient requiring medical attention.

She said eligibility would depend on the severity of a patient’s condition and whether road transport posed a clinical risk.

The service will prioritise time-sensitive cases requiring neurosurgical, cardiac, trauma and obstetric care.

The Namibia Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) also confirmed that the aircraft had undergone a five-phase certification process that began in February 2026.

MISPLACED PRIORITIES

Kalangula argued that the government should prioritise strengthening basic healthcare services alongside investments in emergency medical transport.

“The most evident issue is the complete disconnect between this high-profile aviation acquisition and the reality on the ground inside our public health facilities,” he said.

He said public hospitals and clinics continued to experience chronic shortages of basic life-saving medicines, functioning diagnostic equipment, intensive care unit beds and standard road ambulances.

“Transferring a costly, out-of-production jet to the Ministry of Health while clinics lack basic Panado, bandages and working oxygen points is the exact equivalent of buying an expensive electric stove for a village homestead that has no electricity, no power lines and no food to cook. It serves as an impressive centrepiece but does nothing to solve the hunger of the people,” he said.

Kalangula said Namibians deserved a functional and properly equipped healthcare system rather than what he described as high-profile aviation spending that risked draining public resources.

“Namibians deserve a functional, well-equipped and grounded healthcare system, not high-altitude optics that drain the national treasury,” he said.