Namibia launches first state-owned air ambulance service with a Learjet

Namibia launched its first state-owned air ambulance service on Wednesday 4 November 2026, with Vice President Lucia Witbooi opening it at Eros Airport in Windhoek. The service will fly critically ill and injured people from remote areas to hospitals that provide specialist care.

How the service will work

The service includes a Learjet fitted with medical equipment so it functions as an intensive care unit in the air. When needed, helicopter evacuation can be arranged through the Namibian Police Force and the Namibian Defence Force.

Government Air Transport Services will supply the aircraft and pilots, working with the Ministry of Health and Social Services and the Ministry of Works and Transport. The health ministry led the project.

Specialist medical staff will care for patients during flights, and emergency service centres at the national referral hospitals will receive them on arrival. A new health ministry call centre will take air evacuation requests, verify referrals and dispatch the service. Patients who need quick specialist treatment, such as serious trauma, neurological, heart or childbirth emergencies, and those for whom road travel is unsafe or too slow, may qualify.

Why it matters

Witbooi said distance has long kept care far from many communities. Road trips that take many hours can be cut to minutes or a few hours by air. Witbooi said: "No Namibian should lose their life simply because they live far from a hospital."

Health minister Esperance Luvindao said the air service meets needs today, while government continues plans to build more hospitals, which take money and time. The air service will work with the ground ambulance fleet and the referral links between district, intermediate and national referral hospitals.

What comes next

Witbooi said success will rely on steady funding, regular aircraft maintenance, specialist training and strict aviation safety standards. She asked the health ministry and its partners to put in place ways to track performance.

She also named support from the Namibia Civil Aviation Authority, the Ministry of Defence and Veterans Affairs and the Motor Vehicle Accident Fund. The Brief reported that the government has not published a budget or expected annual patient numbers.

On The Flying Engineer

Private operators also work in the country, including LifeLink Emergency Rescue Services, which runs ground and air ambulances. Learjet is part of Bombardier. More companies are on the air ambulance companies page and the aviation companies in Namibia page. The next Air Medical Transport Conference is 25 to 27 October 2027.

Source: The Namibian and The Brief