Government has repossessed the operation of Kamowa Airstrip in Luangwa District that was being run by a civilian company Yexley Zambia Limited.
This follows the expiry of the license issued to Yexley in June 2011, after the Ministry of Defence that had been operating the Airstrip from the 1970s during the liberation struggle of neighboring countries could no longer use the airstrip.
Defence Minister Edgar Lungu has told a media briefing this morning that Yexley’s license to operate the airstrip came to end on 31st December 2011.
Mr. Lungu says arising from non renewal of the license, Yexley sublet the operation of the airstrip to third parties an act that was also a violation of the regulation of civil aviation as it did not consult the Department of Civil Aviation before subletting the airstrip.
He says this has led to the recommendation that Luangwa District Council takes full responsibility of management and operations of the airstrip and should apply for a license from the Department of Civil Aviation.
Mr Lungu adds that the other recommendation is that due to the sensitivity of the area, no private tour operator should be issued with an operating license to manage the airstrip.
The status and existence of the Kamowa Airstrip in Luangwa District can be traced back to the year 1954 during the time it was being managed by the Council before the Ministry of Defence took charge of its operations in the late 1970s.
I UNDERSTAND WHY HEMCS LIKES THIS MAN.EDGAR CAN DELIVER……THUBS UP
No wonder poachers are flying out with our wildlife! !
Is this why tour operators don’t want a mine in the lower Zambezi so that they can continue to operate like this?
Edgar should stop politicizing ownership of the Luangwa Airstrip. We need to commend the private sector in the tourism industry for opening up remote areas to be accessible to tourists. Look at Royal Zambezi Airstrip, it is because of private initiative that this part of Lower Zambezi is accessible all year round. The owners even surfaced the runway with asphalt!
So from 31th December, 2011, to now, the so called airstrip has been operating without any paper and our Minister or is it govt, only decided to “reposse” it this month?? Only in zambia