Tourism ministry says KQ move to cut US direct flights ill-advised

Foreign Affairs CS Monica Juma and then US Ambassador to Kenya Robert Godec at JKIA during KQ’s inaugural direct flight to New York. [File, Standard]

The Tourism ministry has criticised Kenya Airways’ (KQ) decision to cut down the number of direct flights on the recently launched New York route.

Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala said the route has much potential and requires the airline to put in a lot of work, over time, to get enough numbers to make it profitable. KQ started flying to the JFK Airport in October last year amid much hype and fanfare championed by the Government, particularly the tourism and transport ministries.