National carrier Kenya Airways has announced the launch of flights to two new destinations - Kilimanjaro in Northern Tanzania and Eldoret in Kenya’s Rift Valley - beginning July. The airline will, from July 2, fly to Kilimanjaro International Airport and twice daily to Eldoret starting July 4. The launch of the new destinations is expected to strengthen the airline’s presence in the region.

Kenya Airways will operate narrow body Embraer E170 aircraft on the Eldoret route with KQ 660 and KQ661 departing from Nairobi and Eldoret at 0740hrs and 0910hrs respectively. In the evening, KQ664 will depart Nairobi at 1715hrs whilst KQ665 departs from Eldoret at 1900hrs. The airline will also operate E170 to Kilimanjaro starting with 6 flights a week until 30th September and growing to daily flights from 1st October.  Eldoret is one the major towns in Kenya’s agriculturally rich Central Rift region.

“Eldoret is a busy town considering its proximal location to the country food basket. Also, as more people seek opportunities in the counties, we expect passenger volumes to grow,” noted Dr Naikuni.

Currently, Fly 540 and Jetlink Airlines fly to Eldoret charging fares of Ksh. 6, 830 and Ksh. 7, 351 respectively. These are one way tickets inclusive of taxes.