Air Botswana’s recent appearance before Botswana’s Parliamentary Standing Committee on Statutory Bodies and State Enterprises provided a detailed account of an airline under significant operational, financial and governance pressure. The evidence presented by management pointed to an organisation carrying historic audit backlogs, fleet constraints, pilot shortages, weak executive continuity and heavy dependence on government support. At the same time, management set out a recovery path centred on restoring aircraft availability, rebuilding public confidence, filling critical leadership posts and improving operational discipline before pursuing route expansion.
Air Botswana’s management team, led by Dr Bao Mosinyi, appeared before the committee as part of Parliament’s oversight responsibility over state-owned entities. Dr Mosinyi, who was appointed in early February 2026, described an airline that he had joined at a time of serious operational difficulty, but also one where management believes there is a basis for recovery.
The mandate of Air Botswana, as set out in the Air Botswana Act of 1988, is the provision, development, operation and management of air transport services. The airline is also expected to support wider economic sectors, including trade and tourism. However, the evidence presented to the committee showed that the airline has struggled to fulfil the financial discipline envisioned in the Act, even where it has continued to provide air transport services.
A central issue raised before the committee was that Air Botswana has never generated revenues sufficient to produce a reasonable return based on the fair value of its assets, as required under Section 17 of the Act. The airline has also fallen behind on statutory reporting obligations. Section 22 requires audited financial statements to be submitted within four months of the end of the financial year, yet during the period under review, the organisation reportedly achieved this only once. Section 23 requires the annual report to be presented to the minister within six months of the financial year-end, and this had not been done during the review period.
Governance at the Centre of the Crisis
Management’s submission placed board instability at the root of several operational and financial failures. Since the 2020/21 financial year, Air Botswana had a properly functioning board for only four of the six years under review. In four of those years, the board was described as fragile, with intermittent quorum. In two of the years, there was predominantly no quorum.
The position became particularly acute in 2024 and 2025, when the board was largely unable to form a quorum. A board appointed in May 2025 restored quorum and allowed some governance work to begin, particularly on high-level oversight matters. In January 2026, two additional board members were appointed, placing the board two members above quorum. However, three board members resigned two months before the parliamentary appearance, again leaving the board without a quorum.
The governance gap has had direct consequences for executive management. Under the Air Botswana Act, directors are appointed by the board, taking into account the recommendation of the general manager. Without a functioning board, the organisation has been unable to stabilise its senior management structure.
Across the period under review, several executive posts were vacant or without substantive office-holders for long periods. The general manager position was without a substantive incumbent for 12 months. The finance manager role was vacant for eight months. Human resources was without a substantive appointment for 23 months, commercial for 33 months, customer and ground services for 19 months, engineering for 37 months, and flight operations for 62 months.
At the time of the committee appearance, Dr Mosinyi said he was the only substantive member of the executive team. The six director-level positions were all occupied in an acting capacity.
Audit Backlogs
Air Botswana’s audit backlog was another major concern. The 2021 financial statements were signed in 2022, nine months later than required under the Act. The 2022 financial statements were signed only two months before the committee appearance. Work on the 2023 financial statements was said to be almost complete and awaiting signature.
Management’s catch-up plan is to begin the 2024 statements in May, complete the 2025 statements by December, and catch up with the 2026 financial statements by March 2027. As things stood, for the five-year period under review, the only completed financial statements available were those for the financial year ending 2022.
The backlog was attributed to the absence of a board quorum, acting executive management, weaknesses created by a previous restructuring, and data integrity problems within the finance function. The restructuring reportedly removed many of the people who understood the airline’s financial systems and processes.
The financial statements that had been completed were described as fairly presented, but with exceptions. These included areas such as inventory and trade payables, where auditors could not conclude due to scope limitations, leading to a qualified audit opinion.
Corrective actions are being introduced. Several vacant posts have been filled or are being advertised, and policies have been developed in response to audit findings. However, some of those policies are still pending board approval, again tying operational correction back to the governance challenge.
An Airline Dependent on Government Support
Air Botswana’s financial performance over the review period showed continuing losses and heavy reliance on government support. The peak revenue during the period under review by the committee was P330 million at the end of 2024. The highest net loss was P204 million. Operational government support over the period amounted to more than P523 million.
Management described the airline as having been a cash-losing operation in each of the years under review.
In addition to direct government support, Air Botswana also carries a government loan originally advanced in 2018. The airline took a P230 million loan, which, during the hearing, was described as irresponsible from both the government’s side and the airline’s side, given that the airline’s financial position offered no realistic basis for repayment. With interest, the loan has grown to more than P304 million.
The Ministry of Finance recently called the airline to account for repayment of the loan. Air Botswana has since written to the Minister of Finance to explain that, in its current state, the airline cannot repay the P304 million. The airline has requested that the portion used to purchase aircraft be converted into equity and that the portion used for operations be converted into a grant.
The committee discussion noted that the P230 million had been intended for the procurement of two Embraer E170 aircraft. According to the evidence presented, P130 million was used to procure one aircraft, while P100 million was used for operations. It was acknowledged that the operational use of the funds occurred without the required authorisation. Air Botswana has not yet received a response from the Minister of Finance on the request.
Fleet Availability Remains a Defining Constraint
Fleet availability remains one of the airline’s most visible challenges. Air Botswana has six aircraft purchased by the government, of which only three are operational.
One aircraft is in Botswana with an engine issue that could cost more than P40 million to resolve. Two aircraft are currently in Namibia, where they have remained largely due to non-payment. Management stated that it had worked with the supplier over the last three months and made the final payment approximately a week before the committee appearance. The two aircraft were expected to be repatriated to Botswana at the beginning of June.
Restoring the three non-operational aircraft will require substantial funding. Between the two aircraft in Namibia and the aircraft grounded in Botswana, management estimated that approximately P65 million would be needed to return them to service.
The airline’s current schedule is built around two aircraft while using three available aircraft: two turboprops and one Embraer E175 jet. This limited operational base has exposed the airline to severe disruption when one aircraft type or crew group becomes unavailable.
The fleet plan now under consideration is not based on rapid route expansion. Instead, management wants to stabilise operations first. The airline believes it can run its core schedule with three aircraft, keep a fourth aircraft available for flexibility or charter work, and lease out two jets on a short-term basis once they are restored.
The proposed leasing plan covers the E170 and E175. The intention is to lease them with pilots and associated operating capability. The strategy is that this could generate meaningful revenue while the airline works on internal operational efficiency.
Pilot Shortages
Air Botswana has around 30 pilots, but the evidence presented to the committee showed that only about 10 were current and actively sustaining the airline’s operations. Around 20 pilots were inactive while still being paid. Nine pilots had resigned since the beginning of the year.
This situation became critical when the ratings of pilots operating the E175 jet expired. Management attributed this to poor long-term planning, saying the airline should have identified and addressed the problem much earlier in 2025. The consequence was the cancellation of Cape Town, Lusaka and Harare flights, as only the jet can operate these routes.
With the jet unavailable, the airline was left to operate domestic services and Johannesburg using their ATR aircraft. This placed heavy pressure on the small group of current ATR pilots, who occasionally reach their regulated duty-time limits. This has led to flight cancellations because there are not enough ATR-rated pilots available.
A test and training pilot from Europe has been brought in to resolve the jet pilot issue so that the pilots can return to operations. However, this still requires clearance from the Civil Aviation Authority. The airline is hopeful that regulatory clearance will allow the jet pilots to be checked within days, allowing services to resume before the end of the week.
The operational picture presented was one of daily schedule management. Each day, the airline needs to assess, route by route, which pilots are available, who can legally fly and which flights can be operated.
Route Rationalisation and Right-Sizing
Several routes were discontinued after the new board assumed responsibility in mid-2025. These included routes such as Durban and Windhoek. Management explained that they had been introduced with the expectation that they would develop over time and become profitable, but the airline’s operational inefficiency made success unlikely.
The current strategy is to avoid rapid route expansion and first make the airline operationally efficient.
Domestic connectivity remains an area of concern, particularly in Francistown. Management acknowledged public and business community demand for a morning flight to Francistown and an evening return. However, with the current equipment, the airline cannot operate to Francistown twice a day.
It would appear that Air Botswana is looking at options for smaller aircraft better suited to domestic routes, although management cautioned that very small aircraft, such as seven-seaters, would be difficult to operate profitably. The broader principle is to match the aircraft to the route, both commercially and operationally.
Affordability, Load Factors and Passenger Confidence
Air Botswana’s management argued that air transport remains relatively affordable, even after recent fuel-related fare adjustments.
The deeper problem is not only pricing, but confidence. Management acknowledged that public confidence in Air Botswana’s promises is weak. The strategy now is to rebuild trust through performance rather than messaging.
The airline intends to focus on improved punctuality, fewer cancellations and stronger operational reliability before actively encouraging passengers to return. This is particularly important for passengers with time-sensitive trips or those connecting to other airlines, who have been avoiding Air Botswana because of reliability concerns.
The target is to rebuild confidence, fill aircraft and improve the relationship between cost per available seat kilometre and revenue per available seat kilometre.
The airline’s on-time performance had improved significantly in the weeks and months before the latest pilot-related disruption. Once the pilot issue is resolved, the airline expects the underlying improvements to become more visible to the travelling public.
A Recovery Plan Built Around Stability First
Air Botswana’s immediate priorities are clear: improve operational reliability, restore grounded aircraft, strengthen regulatory compliance, clear the audit backlog, diversify revenue and build long-term financial sustainability.
The short-term operational plan is to return jet pilots to currency, recover the aircraft from Namibia, address the engine issue on the E170, send additional pilots to simulator training, and stabilise the schedule. Management suggested that by the end of June or the beginning of July, the airline could be running more smoothly, barring weather or other external disruptions.
The financial plan relies in part on leasing out two jets, generating income while the airline improves internal efficiency.
The airline also sees charter opportunities and domestic aircraft optimisation as potential areas for future development, but only after restoring reliability and operational discipline.
