Zambian Airways
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| Founded | 1948 (PNORTHERN RHODESIA) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ceased operations | 2009 | ||||||
| Hubs | Lusaka International Airport | ||||||
| Fleet size | 5 | ||||||
| Destinations | 6 | ||||||
| Headquarters | Lusaka, Zambia | ||||||
| Key people | Mutembo Nchito (CEO) Bernard Chiwala (CCO) Donald MacDonald (CFO) | ||||||
Zambian Airways was an airline based in Lusaka, Zambia.[1] It suspended operations on January 10, 2009.[2]
History
The airline was formed as a part of the Northern Rhodesia Aviation services in 1948.[3] After the white minority led Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence in 1965, the airline remained within Zambian territory and was renamed to Mines Air Services Limited (MAS) as a subsidiary of Zambia Consolidated Copper Mines (ZCCM).[4] As part of the process of privatisation of the mines, MAS was disposed of by the government of Zambia on 28 April 1998 and renamed Roan Air for a single year.[3] It changed its name to Zambian Airways in 1999, and British Airways franchised the airline in early 2001.[5] At the time of its purchase, the airline was a joint venture, with an ownership stake by British Airway's South African franchisee, Comair, and Roan Air Holdings of Zambia.[5][6]
MAS purchased two new Raytheon Beech 1900D Airliner aircraft from Raytheon Credit Corporation (RCC) in July and August 1998 respectively. The company has been operating these two aircraft since then, under the trading name of Zambian Airways. On 10 January 2009, the company announced a suspension of operations, citing high fuel costs as the main reason. The firm was embroiled in a corruption scandal at the same time as the announced closure of the airline.[7][8]
Accusations of corruption
It was reported that Nchito, then CEO of Zambian Airlines and the Director of Public Prosecutions,[9] granted a role at the airline to Fred M'membe in exchange for a board position at a former national newspaper, The Post.[10] Additionally, it Nchito was accused of taking millions in loans to the airline, and not disclosing services provided.[11] Zambia's Task Force on Corruption then investigated the scandal, yet Nchito was appointed to the Task Force, facing public backlash.[12]
After the end of operations, shareholders were not available for comment in order to answer questions about when or if the airline may commence operations again. According to a statement made by the Zambian Minister of Communications and Transport,[13] Dora Siliya, forty-one passengers had been stranded in Johannesburg as a direct result of the airline suspension of operations. The Zambian government announced on 9 February 2009, that it intended to sue Zambian Airways in order to recover the outstanding loans the airline held with a number of firms. The airlines debt estimated to be to be US $29 million.[14]
Service and fleet
During operational years, Zambian Airways served the following destinations:
The Zambian Airways fleet consisted of the following aircraft (as of 24 September 2008):[15]
| Aircraft | Total | Passengers | Routes | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J | Y | Total | ||||
| Boeing 737-200 | 3 | 12 | 106 | 118 | South Africa and Tanzania | 2 aircraft are leased from Safair |
| Beechcraft 1900 | 2 | 0 | 18 | 18 | Domestic and Zimbabwe | |
| Total | 5 | Updated: September 2008 | ||||
References
- ^ Forbes, Peter; Wilson, Peter (8 January 2018). "Zambia Aviation Sector Business Environment Assessment" (PDF). Business Environment Reform Facility for Department for International Development. pp. 30–31. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
- ^ "Zambian Airways suspends operation, passengers stranded". Afriquejet.com. Archived from the original on 2011-10-05.
- ^ a b "History on Northern Rhodesia currently Zambia". www.zambianhistory.com. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
- ^ Chongo, Clarence (December 2022). "A Hostage Economy: The Impact of Rhodesia's Unilateral Declaration of Independence on Zambia, 1965-79". Southern Journal for Contemporary History. 47 (2): 4–29. doi:10.38140/sjch.v47i2.6556.
- ^ a b "BA adds Zambian to stable and enters talks with BRAL". Flight Global. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
- ^ Sampa, Chiluyfa (9 March 2001). "Zambia: British Airways Success: Missed Lessons For Zambia Airways". Times of Zambia. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Zambia: M'membe & Mutembo Benefitted $50, 000 From Zamtrop". allAfrica.com. Archived from the original on 2016-01-01. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
- ^ zamobserver (2024-04-07). "WHAT ROLE DID M'MEMBE PLAY IN INVESTRUST,DBZ, ZAMBIAN AIRWAYS, FINANCE BANK,NAPSA AND ZRA? - The Zambian Observer". Retrieved 2025-08-13.
- ^ Kaaba, O'Brien; Towela Sambo, Pamela (November 2020). "Mutembo Nchit Mutembo Nchito v Attorney General 2016/CC/0029 (27 October 2020)". SAIPAR Case Review. 3 (2) – via Cornell Law School.
- ^ Nation, Daily (2021-03-07). "How M'membe, Nchito looted Post, airline". Daily Nation. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
- ^ "Zambia : The Zambian Airways saga-the story going round the Internet". 2009-03-06. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
- ^ "Zambia : Drop Mutembo from Task Force prosecution team". 2009-03-02. Retrieved 2025-08-13.
- ^ The Zambian Ministry of Communications and Transport is no longer a government agency in Zambia. As of 2025, cabinet reorganization has lead to tasks within the ministry being split. Currently, the Zambian Ministry of Transport and Logistics, created in 2021, oversees all transportation topics. From the ministry's website, "The Ministry draws its mandate from Government Gazette Notice No.1123 of 2021 and is mandated to coordinate the development, policy and regulation of the transport and logistics sector." While the Ministry of Finance and National Planning covers regulations and policy concerning communications.
- ^ "Zambian govt to sue private airline". Africanmanager.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2011. Retrieved February 10, 2009.
- ^ "Search". CH-Aviation. Archived from the original on 14 March 2012.
