By Jana-Mari Smith
Confidence is returning to Namibia’s national carrier, Air Namibia, as reflected in current sales volumes. This was one of several positive outlooks Rene Gsponer, Air Namibia’s Chief Operations Officer (COO), shared during a celebratory evening at the 2014 Air Namibia Travel Agency Awards.
DID YOU KNOW? Air Namibia carries just under half a million passengers per year
Gsponer added that the parastatal is proud “to announce that for the third month, we have managed to attain financial break even. This is a historical first for Air Namibia”.
He noted that part of the upward trend is due to the adoption of a five year business plan in 2011 during which a lot of initiatives have been implemented. “A lot of these initiatives resulted in improved efficiency and service standards … A lot of work still lies ahead but Air Namibia is committed to reaching the best in class standard”, he said.
DID YOU KNOW? Air Namibia has marketing representatives in 8 African Countries, 15 European Countries, 2 North American Countries and 4 Asian Countries
He highlighted several initiatives that have contributed to the outcomes, including the implementation of supporting systems in operations, which have contributed to the improvement of ‘on time performance’ – from last years 74% dispatch reliability to the current average of 94% in 2014.
DID YOU KNOW? Air Namibia currently operates the youngest fleet of aircraft in Africa & was named as the greenest airline in Africa in a IATA report due to the fuel efficiency of their new A330s
Gsponer praised Air Namibia’s collaborators, be it in-house staff or outside players, such as travel agents, for their hand in the wave of positive outcomes.
DID YOU KNOW? Together with Namibia Tourism Board, Air Namibia creates between 60 to 80 Million Euros per annum in media value towards the marketing of Namibia as a destination.
NUMBER CRUNCHING
During the evening Nathaly Ahrens, Air Namibia Manager at Sales & Marketing, presented a number of highlights related to Sales and Operational Statistics.
SALES NUMBERS
PERFORMANCE