Outcry as Jambojet pulls out of Lamu route

A Jambojet passenger receives a red rose from one of the Miss Tourism Kenya finalists from various counties soon after disembarking from the flight at the Ukunda Airstrip in Diani, Kwale County, on March 29 last year. The airline said it is suspending its flights to Lamu from next week. [PHOTO: GIDEON MAUNDU/STANDARD]

NAIROBI: The decision by low-cost carrier Jambojet to suspend flights to Lamu has been criticised by players in the tourism industry who termed it detrimental to the county's fledgling economy.

Jambojet's Chief Executive Willem Hondius said effective Tuesday next week, they will be suspending flights to Lamu owing to delays in completion of expansion works at the Lamu Airport.

The airline, which started flying to the popular coastal destination in March last year, says the move is as a result of the slow pace of doubling the length of the Manda Airport runway to two kilometres.

However, Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) Acting Managing Director Yatich Kangugo dismissed Jambojet's claims. "There is clearly no cause for them (Jambojet) to cease operations on the Lamu route unless they have other reasons," Kagungo said. Kagungo said the Government has invested Sh640 million in upgrading the entire Lamu airport.

"When Jambojet made its intentions known to us that they sought to start services to lamu, we informed them that there were ongoing works and that it might take time to complete and certify (certain equipment) to land at the facility,'' Kangugo said. He added that airline operators were informed well in advance on how to go about their flight operations.

"What we are awaiting from the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) is the Notice to Airmen (Notam) notification. We have already written to KCCA and are awaiting their response," he said. He said the rehabilitation work on the runway now measuring two kilometres is complete.

Jambojet says the short runway has forced it to fly at below half capacity, reduce the frequency of its flights to Lamu from June last year and has now withdrawn from the route.

Lamu hotelier Keziah Mumbi said the pullout by Jambojet will be a big blow to business and tourism fortunes on the Lamu Island in the New Year. "This is never a good way to start the New Year. We do not have all-weather roads that people could drive by and come to Lamu. Not all people can afford the high cost of air travel and this puts us in an awkward position," Keziah said.

Former Lamu Chamber of Commerce & Industry Secretary Ali Bunu termed the move by Jambojet as ill-calculated and meant to deprive the economy of Lamu much-needed growth.

Other airlines that fly to Lamu include Air Kenya, Fly 540 and Safarilink. "Jambojet is still not allowed to use the full runway until all technicalities are fulfilled by the authorities," the Jambojet's chief executive was quoted saying.

The Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) began undertaking extension works at the Lamu Airstrip four years ago. The expansion was to enable the facility to handle larger aircraft such as the Embraer and the Boeing 737. This is part of a Sh1 billion upgrade that also involved building a new terminal to handle 200 passengers, a fire station and water supply and airport apron.

Jambojet launched new routes from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to Lamu, Malindi and Ukunda in March 2015, in a move that was expected to breathe new life into the hard-hit tourism sector at the Coast. The airline is a subsidiary of kenya Airways.