Excitement over KQ’s low-cost carrier plan

Excitement over Kenya Airway’s low-cost carrier plan

By Jackson Okoth

Kenya: It might soon become more attractive for a business or leisure traveller to take a flight from Nairobi to Kisumu Mombasa or Eldoret rather than use road transport.

This follows introduction of low-cost carrier Jambo Jet by Kenya Airways, which will launch flights from Nairobi to Kisumu, Mombasa and Eldoret at Sh3,000 one-way. Passengers currently pay between  Sh1,600 and Sh1,800 for a bus ride from Nairobi to Mombasa.

The announcement by Kenya Airways comes at a time when night bus travel ban is still in force, a situation that is inconveniencing to businesspeople who need to travel often.

“I believe the market in Kenya is ripe for low-cost carriers.  The economy is growing and there is a fast growing middle class with IT penetration and credit/debit card usage much more widespread than in many African States,” said Dr Elijah Chingosho-secretary general, African Airlines Association.

In an email interview, he said most middle-class people currently travel by surface transport.  A low-cost carrier will result in reduced ticket prices and this will make air transport more affordable. 

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Affordable travel

Experts maintain that the lowering of the cost air tickets will lead to development of a new markets by attracting  people who have never used air transport before. 

“It will be possible to travel faster, easier and cheaper from Nairobi to Mombasa-especially when required to physically verify cargo at the port,” said William Ojonyo-Chief Executive-Keynote Logistics Limited.

Beginning April 1, 2014, Jambo Jet will begin local flights on the Nairobi to Kisumu, Eldoret and Mombasa routes before venturing to other regional destinations.

It costs about Sh1,500 to travel by a luxury bus service from Nairobi to Eldoret in a journey that lasts between five-six hours, while it costs half of this amount and about four hours in a shuttle.

KQ’s re-entry into the low-cost carrier business puts it on a collision course with other players already in this segment. The crowded field in low-budget operators include East African Safari Air Express, a subsidiary of Fly 540 Kenya, which began three weekly flights from Nairobi to Lokichogio a few days ago.

While the new move by KQ is expected to cause a shift in the low-carrier business, questions linger over whether there is enough capacity to challenge road transporters or enough flights to cater for the huge number of upcountry travellers.

It costs Sh7,650 to fly one way from Nairobi to Eldoret in KQ economy class, inclusive of taxes while a return ticket for those flying on Wednesday 19, 2014 using the same aircraft from Nairobi to Eldoret and back will cost Sh14,945.00.

In comparison, it will cost Sh6,502 to fly from Nairobi to Eldoret in Fy540 on February 23 in the morning while an inbound flight from Eldoret to Nairobi on this same day will cost Sh6,970. It costs Sh7,055 to fly from Nairobi to Kisumu in Fly 540 economy class.