Kenya Airways to grow network across Africa

Kenya Airways (KQ) has today affirmed that plans to grow its network across Africa were on course, after it officially announced its intent to fly to Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso starting

Kenya Airways (KQ) has today affirmed that plans to grow its network across Africa were on course, after it officially announced its intent to fly to Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso starting July 15.

The new route, the 55th of the airlineโ€™s global destinations, will operate via Cotonou, the capital of Benin.

The airline will operate the route with a Boeing 737โ€“800, twice weekly every Friday and Monday out of Nairobi.

Highlighting the airlines ambition to be the carrier of choice for Africa, Kenya Airways Chief Executive Officer Dr. Titus Naikuni noted, โ€œOur plans to fly to every capital in Africa by 2013 and consolidate our route network on the continent are well on course. Ougadougou is the 2nd of the routes that we have opened this year after Ndjamena in Chad, with plans at various stages for a further 6 destinations in the course of this financial year.โ€

Ougadougou is the capital of Burkina Faso and the administrative, communications, cultural, and economic center of the nation. The country is landlocked with its primary economic activities being food processing and textile manufacture.

Dr. Naikuni noted that Africa is now acknowledged as the frontier for growth with the continent recording increasing economic activity and trade. He added that Kenya Airways was seeking to diversify its route network throughout Africa in order to tap into the unique opportunities on this very diverse continent.
โ€œTransport is an important factor in economic development because it enables movement of people, goods, and services, as well as access to markets, especially for landlocked countries. With this African expansion strategy, Kenya Airways is opening up the continent to a world of opportunity,โ€ he explained.

Kenya Airways has appointed a local General Sales Agent (GSA) in Ouagadougou to oversee its operations in the new market. In addition, the airline has set up its own sales and station office ahead of the July 15 inaugural flight.
To support its route expansion strategy, the airline recently announced the signing of an agreement to take delivery of 9 Boeing Dreamliner aircrafts. KQ also signed a letter of intent with Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer seeking to purchase 10 E190 jets. In addition, Kenya Airways took delivery of a 2nd Embraer E-190 jet early this month; bring the airlineโ€™s total current fleet to 32 aircraft.

Kenya Airways, “The Pride of Africa,” has positioned itself as a key driver in the development of transport links across Africa. The airline seeks to be the carrier of choice on the continent, connecting various African cities and linking Africa to the world through the airlines hub in Nairobi. Kenya Airways is set to commence flights to its 54th global destination, Ndjamena, Chad, later this month.

ABOUT KENYA AIRWAYS: Kenya Airways is the flag carrier of Kenya established in 1977 and headquartered at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. Part of the SkyTeam Alliance, the airline operates to over 46 scheduled destinations throughout Africa, Europe, the Indian subcontinent, and Asia.

KENYA AIRWAYS EQUIPMENT: The Kenya Airways fleet is composed of 4 Boeing 777-200Ers, 6 Boeing 767-300Ers, 5 Boeing 737-800s, 4 Boeing 737-700s, 5 Boeing 737-300s, and s6 Embraer E17LRs – 30 aircraft in total.

KENYA AIRWAYS ROUTE OVERVIEW: Kenya Airways is based in Nairobi, Kenya, and operates scheduled service to:

AFRICA: Abidjan, Accra, Addis Ababa, Antananarivo, Bamako, Bangui, Brazzaville, Bujumbura, Cairo, Cotonou, Dakar, Dar-es-Salaam, Djibouti, Douala, Dzaoudzi, Entebbe, Freetown, Gaborone, Harare, Johannesburg, Khartoum, Kigali, Kilimanjaro, Kinshasa, Lagos, Libreville, Lilongwe, Lubumbashi, Lusaka, Luanda, Mahe, Malabo, Monrovia, Moroni, Ndola, N’djamena, Ouagadougou, Yaounde, Zanzibar.

FAR EAST, ASIA, MIDDLE EAST: Bangkok, Dubai, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Muscat.

EUROPE: Amsterdam, Paris, London, Rome.

DOMESTIC: Kisumu, Mombasa, Malindi, Nairobi (HUB).

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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