Kenya Airways Continues African Capital Expansion

Kenya Airways has taken a further step in its ambition to open air services to every African capital city by the end of 2013, by formalising its schedule to serve N’djamena in Chad. From June 19th the carrier will introduce a twice weekly link that will operate via Cotonou in Berlin.

“Most countries in Central Africa including Chad are landlocked and thus have limited export opportunities. However, they represent an important trade corridor to the lucrative West African market where Kenya Airways has a strong presence,” said Titus Naikuni, Managing Director, Kenya Airways, adding that the carrier would open eight new destinations this year.

"We are opening up Africa to a world of opportunity. Other markets around the world are already saturated and more airlines are increasing their presence in Africa as its the new business frontier," he added.

There are currently no flights between Nairobi and N’djamena and Kenya Airways will hope to attract a mix of point-to-point traffic and transfer passengers on its twice weekly schedule. The Chad capital is already served by Ethiopian Airlines from Addis Ababa, another developing East African hub, while Air France offers direct flights into Europe. Ethiopian Airlines has a seen a steady rise in passengers on its daily service with traffic increasing more than a half in the past year to an estimated 40,000 O&D passengers.