Kenya Airways (KQ) has announced a new plan where it will fly to fewer destinations as a strategy to recover from the huge losses it has made since the COVID-19 pandemic struck in March.
On KQ’s radar are 30 destinations, majority – 22 in Africa – while four are in Europe and the rest spread in the US, Middle East and Asia.
KQ’s Head of Regulatory Affairs Dalmas Okendo told stakeholders on Wednesday that the airline is putting more emphasis on point-to-point deliveries, the safety of its workers and network rationalization.
Okendo according to People Daily said that with this in focus, KQ will rise gradually from the abyss of financial depression that it was thrust in by the pandemic.
However, KQ had been ailing financially even before the pandemic struck in March albeit the fact that it is a key economic player in the country in terms of travel and logistics all of which were affected by the pandemic.
The stakeholders called KQ’s management to continue drawing up more policy frameworks to guide the full operationalization of the airline as the country continues to open up.
For the government, KQ stakeholders called for a “risk-based approach” in opening up the economy and focusing in securing COVID-19 vaccine.
With the national carrier’s resolution, the Kenya Private Sector Alliance is upbeat that business can once again rise.
A fortnight ago, KQ started Mombasa-UAE direct cargo flights in a bid to close the gap that has been left due to low passenger traffic especially now that UAE has suspended Kenyans from flying into the country.
This is due to the second wave of COVID-19 that Kenya is currently battling.
The cargo flights to the UAE from Mombasa will mainly be transporting meat products including fish, vegetables, flowers and fish while the return flight is expected to bring in more general cargo from Dubai.
