NETWORK
GROWTH
New horizons
Felicity Stredder spoke to Kenya Airways’ Area Cargo Manager for Europe &
USA, Katrina Hanson, about the first direct flight from East Africa to the US.
Kenya Airways became
the first airline to offer
a direct service between
East Africa and the US last
year, with the launch of a
route between the US and
Kenya on October 29. Thanks
to the joint efforts of Kenya
Airways, Avia Cargo and The
ARK at JFK’s Pet Oasis, the
inaugural flight also carried a
labradoodle puppy in the hold,
delivered safely to his owner at
JFK. This is just one example
of the possibilities opened
up by the new route – and of
the sorts of cargo the flight
is now bringing directly into
New York from Kenya, and
vice versa. The airline’s Katrina
Hanson told ALI a little more
about how the venture came
about and the anticipated
benefits to the regional
industry.
The specifics
The new service operates
between New York’s John
F Kennedy International
airport and Jomo Kenyatta
International airport in
Nairobi. “With over 40
American multinational
organisations located in
Nairobi and many more across
Africa, the launch of our
service will open up a new
export trade route between
America and Africa,” Hanson
explains. Kenya Airways can
now offer its cargo customers
a speedy connection from
East Africa to New York, and
vice versa, with a 15-hour
duration eastbound and 14
hours westbound. “The route
is operated with a modern
Boeing 787 Dreamliner
with a cargo capacity of 8
tonnes,” she continues. “The
convenient overnight schedule
will allow connections to all
our 40 African destinations
through our Kenya Airways
hub in Nairobi. At the moment
we’re operating between five
and seven times a week, and
then from the end of March,
for the summer schedule, it’ll
be five times a week,” she says.
Challenges in set-up
Hanson reports that the new
route has been running very
smoothly since set-up, and the
airline is particularly content
with the work of its handling
agent, WFS, in managing
arriving aircraft at JFK.
“We’re very happy with how
it’s all going,” she remarks.
“We replicated what we do
in other parts of the world
whenever we set up a new
route. We have a team that
goes through the procurement
and the audits, and our GSA
on the ground, Avia Cargo,
did a lot of leg work, too,” she
explains. Hanson herself also
flew back and forth performing
facility tours, vetting handling
agents and meeting with
the US Customs and Border
Protection in preparation.
The Boeing 787 aircraft fly into New York
JFK International airport
So pleased are the team
with the results of the new
route that already Kenya
Airways is exploring the
possibility of adding other
US destinations, with Atlanta
and Washington both on the
wish list. Hanson explains
the reasons for these two
destinations in particular:
“To tie up with our Sky
Team partner, Delta, on the
Atlanta connection and then
Washington because there’s a
lot of business that comes out
of the city.”
28 February 2019 www.airlogisticsinternational.com
/www.airlogisticsinternational.com