Windhoek Int. Airport back in business

Hosea Kutako International Airport (HKIA) is back to Category, effective since this past Saturday, 9 August 2014 operating at full capacity.

This was announced by the NAC Acting CEO Mr Tamer El-Kallawi at the Media Conference that took place on Saturday morning at the HKIA. The line Minister of Works & Transport was also in attendance, please see the attached pictures hereto.

In his statement, Mr El-Kallawi begged for sincere pardon from all stakeholders affected by the downgrading of the airport from category 9 to 5, which caused a lot of panic in the market regarding the operations of our A330-200 into/out of HKIA.

He acknowledged that the situation was undesirable, so everything has been done to ensure the speedy restoration of the rescue and firefighting category which is now in place, as the downgrading of the airport was a national concern.

The following hereunder are the steps taken to rectify all issues.

• Two new fire trucks, which had already been ordered before the audit have been received at the NAC and training on the operation was conducted and is certified accordingly.
• HKIA currently has 4 Aviation Fire and Rescue vehicles in  place with the total capacity exceeding the requirements for the category 9 using performance  level B as follows: Water 37 400 L, Foam 4500L, Dry Chemical Powder 1000kg. All Fire and Rescue Vehicles are in a serviceable condition with emphasis on maintenance agreements and standing operating procedures to avoid a repetition of what transpired.
• Nine more new fire trucks are due for delivery shortly and will be distributed amongst the airports accordingly.
• There were misunderstanding regarding the record keeping of the Fire and Rescue Services training records which could not be availed at the time of the audit by the Fire Officers.
• All training records are kept with the Human Resources Department at head office and not at the airport for safe keeping. A training calendar approved by the Regulator is now in place to ensure compliance.
• Additional fire and rescue personnel are re-deployed to HKIA to intensify the shift strength of the airport – as a safety precautionary measure given that it is their flagship airport.
• Furthermore standing operating procedures regarding their communication and alarm systems and all related emergency procedures were reviewed to enhance safety measures.
• They also drew emphasis on the revision of maintenance procedures of their equipment and infrastructure to beef up safety measures.