The president of Botswana, Duma Boko, has announced that the government is selling three grounded Air Botswana (BP, Gaborone) aircraft, with buyers already secured, and will shift to leasing in order to revitalise the airline’s operations.
In an interview with Bloomberg News television, he stated that the airline had suffered from poor management decisions, notably buying aircraft instead of wet-leasing them, and that previous managers often lacked aviation sector knowledge.
"Many of them did not have industry experience, and so decisions that were taken tended to be decisions that were not informed by any real experience and/or outcomes that would help the industry. Take the example of our national airline," Boko said. "Instead of going out and doing wet-leases for aircraft, you go and buy aircraft, many of which are now grounded, so you've parked financial resources that we could otherwise have used in the industry. So these are some of the decisions that served to delay and or impede progress."
ch-aviation has contacted Air Botswana to verify a report by The Botswana Gazette that the three aircraft being sold are the airline's two E145s and one E175, A2-ABE (msn 17000327).
The latter was delivered on August 28, 2024, from Regional One, but spent more than eight months parked at Gaborone due to regulatory delays in the approval of manuals by the Civil Aviation Authority of Botswana (CAAB). Issues such as oil leaks and engine vibrations were reported while the aircraft was en-route to Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta during a ferry flight in August 2024, but Air Botswana refuted these claims. It eventually entered service on May 25, 2025, and is currently serving regional routes to Johannesburg O.R. Tambo, Cape Town International, Harare International, and Lusaka, plus domestic flights to Kasane and Maun, according to ADS-B data.
The airline has issued a tender notice for the sale of one E175 landing gear ship-set, valued at USD915,298. The landing gear is currently at the manufacturer's (Liebherr) overhaul facility in Germany.
The E145s, V5-ABQ (msn 14501022) and V5-ABW (msn 14501040), were acquired in 2024 with state backing but placed on a temporary basis with Namibian charter/ACMI operator Westair Aviation (WAA, Windhoek Eros) due to regulatory constraints in Botswana. Air Botswana also reportedly faced challenges because its pilots and engineers were not familiar with the E145 type, necessitating support and training from Westair. According to ADS-B data, both jets have been parked at Windhoek Eros since August 18 and September 6, respectively. Air Botswana's new board in July questioned the wet-leasing of the two Namibian-registered E145s, in terms of compliance and cost-effectiveness.
"Deep-domain experience"
According to President Boko, his government has brought in "personalities with deep-domain experience" to manage state-owned enterprises, where the "real challenge" has been management lacking the required skills and experience. In Air Botswana's case, former Air Serbia and euroAtlantic Airways chief executive Dane Kondić was appointed to chair the board. It turned out to be a controversial appointment as Kondić is also leading the turnaround of LAM - Linhas Aéreas de Moçambique, which insisted he relinquish his dual role and focus on the Mozambican state carrier.
Meanwhile, Boko said Botswana plans to unbundle its aviation sector, with the country's civil aviation authority acting solely as a regulator, a new airport management company handling infrastructure and technology, and the airline focusing purely on flight operations.
He noted that Botswana had launched a sovereign wealth fund to consolidate all its state-owned enterprises, to ensure they are well-managed and self-sustaining and reduce the need for government financial support.
Air Botswana also operates one E170 and two ATR72-600s, according to ch-aviation data. Earlier this year, the carrier was trying to sell its last remaining ATR42-500 following an unsuccessful attempt to sell the turboprop in 2022.
