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Herald Reporter

AIR Botswana yesterday resumed flights between Gaborone, Harare and Lusaka as more and more airlines continue to re-establish operations in the country.

While at some point airlines were shunning the Zimbabwe route, more than 17 are now flying into the country as a positive response to President Mnangagwa’s “Zimbabwe is open for business” mantra, as well as the re-engagement and engagement policy.

“Air Botswana is pleased to announce the re-commencement of flights between Gaborone, Harare and Lusaka from 6th May 2022.  

“Customers will enjoy two weekly direct flights on Fridays and Sundays during this initial phase. 

“Frequencies will be increased to three times weekly as demand builds up,” reads part of the statement.

Air Botswana general manager Mrs Agnes Khunwana was quoted as saying after the hiatus in travel that was caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, travelling was gradually returning to normalcy.

“We are pleased about this development. It heralds that travel demand is gradually increasing after the global paralysis brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.  

“We are optimistic that, in due course, the desire to travel will be even stronger and have positioned ourselves to cope with the much-anticipated travel demand both locally and regionally”.

The airline will deploy its Embraer 170 Jet to service this route and some of its regional routes include Gaborone-Cape Town. 

 The timing of the flights also allows connections between Lusaka, Harare and Cape-Town reducing flying hours for customers.

Furthermore, the Jet adds to customer convenience due to its speed, comfort, and better catering facilities.

In 2016, Air Botswana once indefinitely ceased operating flights between Gaborone and Lusaka, as well as Harare.