African Air Charter Outfit Adds Airvan 10 To Fleet

Maun, Botswana-based air charter company Major Blue Air has accepted its first 10-seat Mahindra Aerospace Airvan 10. The turboprop single received type certification from both the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) and U.S. FAA last year.

The charter operator already has five eight-seat Airvan 8 piston singles in its fleet; other models on property include the Cessna 172 and 206, Hawker 800XP, and Beechcraft King Air B200 and Baron 58. Major Blue Air’s base hangar is situated at Sir Seretse Khama International Airport in Gaborone.

“Over last few years, we have enhanced our focus and attention to the important [air charter] market. With increasing traffic, this market needed a bigger and turbine aircraft. And the larger Airvan 10 complements the Airvan 8,” said Mahindra Aerospace executive director and CEO Arvind Mehra. According to Mahindra, 35 Airvan 8s have sold in Botswana alone.

The Airvan is the most suitable aircraft for Botswana’s tourism industry, a Mahindra spokesperson told AIN. Larger tourist groups don’t want to hire two aircraft, so the Airvan 10 that seats eight passengers, along with two crew, was needed, she noted, adding, “Besides, the large windows offer an almost 360-degree view of the game country.”

While the airplane is assembled in Australia, the aerostructures business of the Airvan is based in India, where the company has a 270,000-sq-ft/25,000-sq-m facility near Bengaluru. Mahindra is now seeking approval for the Airvan 10 from India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation to allow sales and deliveries in its home country.