Jambojet (JM, Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta) will begin international flights early next year just over eight months after it was granted an International Air Services Licence (ASL) by the Kenyan Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA).
Back in May this year, the KCAA gave the Kenya Airways (KQ, Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta) budget brand the greenlight to commence regular passenger flights from Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta to/from each of Entebbe (Uganda), Addis Ababa International (Ethiopia), Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar, Kilimanjaro, and Mwanza (Tanzania), Kigali (Rwanda), Juba (South Sudan), Bujumbura (Burundi), Hargeisa and Mogadishu (Somalia), Goma and Kisangani (Democratic Republic of Congo), Moroni International (Comoros), and Lilongwe International and Blantyre (Malawi).
As such, Jambojet Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Willem Hondius told the Business Daily newspaper that the relevant applications for bilateral rights had now been submitted ahead of a planned international debut in February 2018.
“For now, the application covers Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. However, we intend to begin by flying to Tanzania and Uganda,” he said.
Jambojet currently operates two Dash 8-400s with a further two due to arrive on lease from Nordic Aviation Capital. Two B737-300s, chartered from Kenya Airways, are due to be returned to its parent as part of its transition to an all-turboprop fleet.
“We are looking at retiring our narrowbody fleet and transitioning to an all-Q400 fleet by end of this year," Hondius said earlier this month. "We are confident that the Q400 aircraft will allow us to implement our growth strategy as we strive to launch new routes and to respond to the anticipated increase in demand.”
