The Transportation Fee of Namibia should rethink an software for the renewal of the licence permitting the airline, FlyNamibia, to function, a decide ordered within the Windhoek Excessive Courtroom yesterday.
The order given by decide Esi Schimming-Chase offers FlyNamibia Aviation a second likelihood to have its software for the renewal of its scheduled air transportation service licence thought-about by the Transportation Fee, after the fee determined almost two weeks in the past to refuse the airline’s software for the renewal of the licence.
Within the order that she issued yesterday, Schimming-Chase reviewed and put aside the fee’s refusal to resume the corporate’s licence, and referred FlyNamibia’s software again to the fee, to be thought-about afresh.
In an affidavit filed on the courtroom, FlyNamibia chief govt Henri van Schalkwyk recounted {that a} scheduled air service licence was first issued to the corporate – then generally known as Westair Aviation – in March 1995. Since then, the licence has been renewed 5 occasions.
FlyNamibia’s present licence is legitimate till 28 March this 12 months.
Van Schalkwyk stated by way of the Air Providers Act, FlyNamibia needed to apply for a renewal of its licence by no later than 28 March final 12 months.
Nonetheless, by an oversight on its half, the corporate missed that deadline, and solely filed its renewal software on 3 November final 12 months, Van Schalkwyk stated.
The fee thought-about the appliance at a gathering on 20 February this 12 months, and notified FlyNamibia about two and a half weeks later that the renewal of the licence was refused.
Van Schalkwyk stated throughout the listening to on 20 February, the fee didn’t level out any materials shortcomings in FlyNamibia’s renewal software or elevate considerations that the corporate wouldn’t be capable of present a protected, dependable and passable air service or that it didn’t have the monetary sources to offer such a service.
Van Schalkwyk additionally famous that FlyNamibia holds a legitimate air operator certificates (AOC), issued by the Namibia Civil Aviation Authority. The air operator certificates wouldn’t have been issued if there was doubt concerning the firm’s potential to offer a protected and dependable service to the general public, he stated.
If its scheduled air service licence expires on 28 March, it will have a catastrophic impact on FlyNamibia and the Westair aviation group, of which it’s half, because the airline’s enterprise would come to a halt, Van Schalkwyk acknowledged in his affidavit.
FlyNamibia’s AOC would additionally lapse if its licence expires, and the airline would then need to undergo a prolonged and sophisticated course of that would take from two to 5 years to acquire a brand new AOC, Van Schalkwyk stated as effectively.
He added that the airline “can merely not survive the lapsing of its licence and AOC”, and that its 87 staff must be retrenched ought to its licence expire.
FlyNamibia operates about 270 scheduled flights per 30 days, and contributes about N$175 million yearly to the broader Namibian economic system by funds to service suppliers, Van Schalkwyk stated.
Senior counsel Raymond Heathcote, assisted by Geoffrey Dicks and instructed by Shaun Ellis, represented FlyNamibia throughout the listening to of its pressing software in opposition to the chairperson of the Transportation Fee on Friday final week.
The fee’s chairperson didn’t oppose the courtroom software.
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Supply: namibian
