Air Namibia passengers angry about luggage ELLANIE SMIT Air Namibia passengers were fuming on Friday when they arrived in Harare only to discover that their luggage had been left behind in Windhoek.
According to a passenger on board the flight that left Hosea Kutako International Airport on Friday evening the plane was fully booked and when they arrived in Harare they found out that no luggage had been loaded.
“Passengers were fuming,” said Dr Chris de Chavonnes Vrugt.
According to him the passengers were only told about the problem after they had been sent to the Lost and Found to find their missing luggage.
He said some passengers received their luggage on Saturday while others only got their bags on Sunday.
On the Sunday return flight to Windhoek luggage again had to be left behind, as the plane was overweight.
Air Namibia spokesperson Paul Nakawa told Namibian Sun that the Embraer ER 135 jet used on the route was carrying too much weight on the flight to Harare, as it was full to capacity with 37 passengers.
According to Nakawa a decision was made to leave all luggage behind at Hosea Kutako.
“It is the industry standard practice to leave baggage whenever an aircraft is full, because it is a safety issue. Every airline does that, it is like cancelling or delaying flights when circumstances dictate so. This was the case with regard to this specific flight, as safety is our number one value,” Nakawa said.
However, industry experts disagree. They say at this time of the year an aircraft has to carry extra fuel in case it needs to divert to another airport because of severe thunderstorms over Harare. The extra fuel makes the aircraft heavier.
Experts told Namibian Sun that no aircraft can fly with a full fuel load as well as the maximum number of passengers and their luggage.
Well-placed sources say the ER 135 is too small for the Harare route, but if Air Namibia has no other aircraft available it should limit seat bookings to 33 to accommodate luggage.
“That is the professional thing to do,” industry sources said.
Namibian Sun was informed that Air Namibia experiences the same problem on its Johannesburg to Windhoek route during the winter months due to strong headwinds.
Nakawa admitted that Air Namibia was wrong not to inform its passengers before they embarked about the decision to leave luggage behind.
He said in some instances this information is communicated by the captain in command of the flight.
He confirmed that the luggage was sent to passengers via Johannesburg on Saturday and all passengers received their luggage.
Air Namibia apologised for the inconvenience promised to improve its communication with passengers in order to avoid disappointments.