Kenya Airways Starts Direct Nairobi-Delhi Flight

To manage the growing traffic between India and Africa, Kenya Airways launched a direct Nairobi-New Delhi flight on Wednesday, May 16, 2012 with one-way fare of Rs 22,000–Rs 28,000. New Delhi is the 57th destination for the airline.

"We have waited long to start this route. We are confident this flight will be very profitable. We are focusing on Asia and India in particular," Evanson Mwaniki, chairman of Kenya Airways, said.

"We hope to attract passengers like tourists, medical tourists, business professionals, transit passengers to other African countries, students and government delegations," Mwaniki said.

The airline's hub Nairobi hosts several Indian companies like Tata, Essar, Reliance Industries and Airtel.

The company said the new routes will help India's trade with Africa as Indian companies seek to gain access to the continent's emerging markets. The airline connects nearly all major African cities.

Apart from Mumbai, the company is eying other cities like Ahmadabad and Bangalore for expansion.

The company also plans to connect Delhi with rest of 45 destinations the airline flies to in Africa.