Staff Reporter
TOURISM in Namibia took a small step towards revival when the first direct scheduled airline flight between Europe and Namibia in six months landed at the Hosea Kutako International Airport earlier on Sunday.
The Eurowings flight landed at 06:20 on Sunday morning and marked the first European flight to arrive in Windhoek after the international ban was implemented in March this year.
To signify the importance of the occasion, the Eurowings Airbus A330-300 aircraft was welcomed at Hosea Kutako International Airport in Windhoek with a ceremonial water salute.
The flight signals the restart of the Eurowings Airline of Lufthansa‘s nonstop scheduled Frankfurt-Windhoek service and is an important step to enable European leisure and business travellers to travel in safety and comfort to Namibia.
The Minister of Environment, Forestry and Tourism, Pohamba Shifeta, said Namibia is delighted to again welcome international guests.
“The re-launch of the Lufthansa Group’s direct flights from Europe is very important for our country and supports our international tourism revival initiative. The Namibian tourism industry, which in my understanding has prepared its services according to professional health and safety protocols and guidelines, offers travellers a safe and secure environment for their relaxed Namibian holiday. Namibia is ready,” he said.
Germany is part of Namibia’s top source markets for tourists, and the Namibia Airports Company was pleased that Eurowings resumed their operation, thanks to the rich historical and bilateral relations between Namibia and Germany.
“We are looking forward to a stronger bond between NAC and the Lufthansa Group,” Bisey Uirab, the Namibia Airports Company Chief Executive Officer, added.
Eurowings will commence operating three weekly direct flights on the Windhoek-Frankfurt route.
The flights are scheduled to arrive every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. The flights will also depart on the same days that they arrive.
“Namibia is an important market for the Lufthansa Group and we are pleased to demonstrate our commitment to this market and our support in the restart of the much needed tourism sector by being the first European airline to resume operations in Namibia. Reinstating a nonstop route between Frankfurt and Windhoek offers German and other leisure visitors from around the globe access to Namibia’s renowned wildlife experience amongst other tourist attractions, while providing an effective connection for business travellers looking to commute between Namibia’s capital city, Windhoek, and one of Europe’s major financial hubs, Frankfurt,” said Dr. André Schulz, General Manager for Lufthansa Group, Southern Africa & East Africa.
For people travelling to Germany, Lufthansa and its partners offers COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests at walk-in testing centres within Frankfurt, Munich and Hamburg airports.
Results are delivered within a few hours and passengers can register beforehand online at lufthansa.com prior to arrival.
“We are delighted that Eurowings as a German airline will resume direct flights from Germany to Windhoek after several months of involuntary break,” Chargée d’Affaires a.i. at the German Embassy in Windhoek, Ellen Gölz, said, adding that the re-established connection contributes to bringing back some normality to travellers between the two countries.
Lufthansa is offering the resumed flight connection through its different sales channels and is operating the service in cooperation with Eurowings.
A return flight to Windhoek is already offered on lufthansa.com from as little as N$9 473 inclusive of all taxes.
All tickets now allow rebooking without an extra fee in order to offer the passengers maximum flexibility.
