Air Botswana to lease out jets as financial pressures mount
Lewanika Timothy | Monday May 18, 2026 06:00
Last year, Air Botswana welcomed the Embraer E175, in what the then-management labelled as a push for regional expansion with the opening of new routes such as Gaborone-Cape Town. Now the airline says it will lease out the jet alongside the Embraer E170 to other airlines to generate short-term revenue and ease off financial pressures.
The newly appointed General Manager of Air Botswana, Bao Mosinyi, appearing before the Parliamentary Committee on Statutory Bodies and State-Owned Enterprises, said the airline runs a two-flight schedule, which at most needs three aircraft as opposed to the six that the airline currently has.
“The issue is that we don’t have enough pilots. We have four aircraft currently running a two-flight schedule, and on a two-flight schedule, you only need three aircraft.” “Where we are right now, we don’t envision a rapid expansion of routes. “Government has provided six aircraft, and so what we will do is to lease out two aircraft in the short term.”
He continued: “We will lease them with their pilots. Once we get these two aircraft out, we will generate quite a bit of funds, so that as we continue to improve operational excellence, we are cushioned by revenue from leasing those aircraft.”
Even with six aircraft, not all of them are operational, as two are currently in Namibia, grounded for lack of payment after repairs and maintenance.
The idea of leasing out aircraft to other airlines, commonly known in aviation as a 'wet lease', allows another airline to rent the aircraft together with pilots and operational support while Air Botswana earns lease income.
However, this development also highlights deeper structural challenges within the national carrier. The airline is planning to lease out aircraft despite government having invested heavily in fleet expansion only recently, including acquisitions meant to support regional growth.
Questions are likely to emerge over whether the airline’s fleet planning matched its operational capacity, particularly after management disclosed pilot shortages, poor planning and the inability to fully utilise existing aircraft.
The revelations come amidst growing scrutiny over the national airline’s financial position after management admitted before the same committee that government support to the airline exceeded P523 million between 2021 and 2025.
The airline is also battling a controversial P230 million government loan secured in 2018 to purchase two aircraft. Only one aircraft was eventually procured under the facility, while auditors reportedly failed to obtain sufficient evidence explaining how the remaining funds were utilised.
Mosinyi has since told legislators that the airline cannot repay the loan, which has now ballooned to more than P300 million with interest. Air Botswana has asked government to convert the loan into equity.