Eswatini Air receives Air Operator Certificate, prepares for launch

The new national carrier of the Kingdom of Eswatini, Royal Eswatini National Airways Corporation (RENAC), trading as Eswatini Air, has received its Air Operator Certificate.

The airline announced the news via Facebook, stating that there were “just a few logistics” to attend to before it would “revert with fares and a schedule” for its routes.

Initial plans
Plans for the new airline were initially revealed in a statement released in May 2022, which highlighted that the carrier would operate regional routes across Southern Africa. The airline added that it would operate direct routes to Cape Town, Durban, Johannesburg in South Africa as well as direct services to Harare the capital of Zimbabwe, using its fleet of two Embraer ERJ 145 aircraft.

The airline also announced a strategic five-year plan and revealed that the first 18 to 36 months of operations would be dedicated to developing new routes to reach market maturity and break-even. Initially Eswatini Air expected to launch scheduled operations in mid-2022.

Launch delays
However, this was delayed after the certification process extended beyond the airline’s initial projections, the airline revealed in a statement issued in October 2022. The regulator overseeing its certification process was working alongside civil aviation authorities in that region to ensure international certification standards were adhered to as this was the first time the Kingdom of Eswatini was undergoing and AOC certification process, the airline noted at the time.

The airline has yet to announce a new launch date.