Loss ridden National Carrier Kenya Airways (KQ) has announced resumption of passenger flights in September but with a low capacity – By Gerald Gekara
This may mark the end to over five months of lost revenue due to Covid-19 pandemic, and kickstart the road to recovery of the ailing pride of Africa.
“There is reasonable expectation that the flights could resume in the third quarter of the year with business expected to have started at very low capacity and a gradual ramp-up, influenced by gradual lifting of travel bans, uncertain passenger confidence and health safety measures,” KQ says in its latest annual report.
Kenya Airways, under its new boss Allan Kilavuka, is expected to draft measures to pave the way for a solution to the airline’s financial constraints.
“The resumption is expected to happen within the period of the moratoriums already being negotiated with lenders and lessors and thereby allowing the airline to grow back its revenue base and gradually cover its fixed costs,” says the airline.
Kenya Airways had converted its passenger jets into cargo flights for essentials such as medicine, but this, according to the managmement, has not been enough to sustain business.
The carrier projected over Sh83 billion loss in sales this year, due to the effects of the Corona pandemic.
Mr Kilavuka, had earlier indicated that the carrier will have to abandon some routes inorder to counter the looming travel crisis, in a post Covid-19 ‘new normal’.
