KQ’s Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner is scheduled to arrive at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) at 10:30am with the dignitaries and press corps that made the inaugural flight.
Direct flight to the US has been billed as key plank in Kenya’s quest to boost the arrival of American tourists.
Until now, US bound Kenyan travellers have had to use connecting flights through Europe or Middle East airports and vice versa – a journey that took more than 24 hours.
The return leg of Kenya Airways #ticker:KQ (KQ’s) inaugural non-stop flight to New York is expected to end in Nairobi this morning, completing the first round of the debut on the route that is expected to boost the airline’s revenues and support its path to recovery.
KQ’s Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner is scheduled to arrive at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) at 10:30am with the dignitaries and press corps that made the inaugural flight.
Direct flight to the US has been billed as key plank in Kenya’s quest to boost the arrival of American tourists as well as deepen commercial activity between the two countries that have been trading partners since Kenya’s independence in the 1963.
Until now, US bound Kenyan travellers have had to use connecting flights through Europe or Middle East airports and vice versa – a journey that took more than 24 hours.
That has now been reduced to a 15-hour journey eastbound and 14-hours westbound cutting off nearly 8 hours.
The direct flight now offers the fastest connection from East Africa to New York City, although the Kenyan carrier is expected to face intense competition in key areas such as ticket prices and service delivery.
Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Monica Juma, US Ambassador Robert Godec, KQ chief executive officer Sebastian Mikosz and chairman Michael Joseph were among the 234 passengers on the flight to New York on the trans-Atlantic flight that took off on Sunday night.
Moments after arrival in New York, Ms Juma said the nonstop KQ flight to New York has given the Kenyan national carrier “a vantage point to serve more than 60 million travelers through JFK.”
“But this also demonstrates another opportunity for creating synergies from the North to the Southern Hemisphere. This KQ flight offers New York, the UN headquarters, and a zenith of multilateral agencies that are dealing with various development aspects into Nairobi, the only UN capital in the global South, a unique opportunity and the benefit of seamless connection,” said Ms Juma.
KQ has so far received 1,974 bookings for the direct route, according to information shared yesterday. The firm has an offer on the route with an introductory fare for the direct flight at Sh75,000 for economy class and Sh213,000 for business class tickets booked by May next year.
The daily flights will be serviced by the Dreamliners, which are preferred for long-haul routes. Besides having high fuel capacity than smaller aircraft, the Dreamliner burns as much as 20 per cent less fuel, saving costs for airlines.
“This is a historic moment for both Kenya and the United States…I know this flight is going to make new things possible — new business deals, new trade, new investment, more opportunities for students to come from the United States to Kenya, and Kenya to the United States,” said Mr Godec.
KQ made history after landing minutes past 2:00 pm Kenyan time (7:00am in New York) a journey that may have aborted had the local aviation worker’s union carried on with the promised industrial action. The workers suspended the strike after court intervention.
(Additional reporting by Kevin J Kelley and Liam Kelley-St Clair at John F Kennedy Airport, New York)
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