- Kenya Airways signed an order for three additional 787-8 Dreamliners with Boeing. The airline now has nine 787s on order, and also holds four options for Boeing's new airplane. Since 1996, Kenya Airways has ordered 19 aircrafts directly from Boeing and currently operates another 12 Boeing airplanes on lease.
The airline's original order for six Boeing 787s was made in March and included six options. The three additional 787s will be added to Boeing's orders & deliveries web site this week.
"We have had remarkable success," Titus Naikuni of Kenya Airways declared in a statement today. "When one weighs the operational advantage these two models bring in tandem, we felt it most prudent that we move now to ensure Kenya Airways retains the best value, and brings a world-class standard of service, for visitors flying to the wide open spaces of Africa."
With the delivery of a Boeing 777-200ER in 2004, Kenya Airways became the first carrier in sub-Sahara Africa to offer 777 service to and from the region. The airline has complemented its fleet of so-called "Next-Generation 737s" with three new 737-800s this year and is expected to take delivery of its fourth 777 in February next year.
The airline is expected to receive its first 787 in October 2010 with deliveries of the nine Dreamliners extending out to late 2012.
"It is wonderful to see such a good Boeing customer like Kenya Airways experiencing phenomenal growth," Lee Monson, Vice President of Sales for the Middle East and Africa at Boeing concurred. "We look forward to our ongoing collaboration and the shared insight from an airline team that continues to demonstrate such a high degree of professionalism."
Kenya Airways serves more than 2 million passengers annually and has the largest network into Africa. The carrier is going through an aggressive expansion programme and it has added destinations that include Mali, Senegal, Mozambique, Turkey, France and China. It further plans to extend services to Eritrea and Sierra Leone.
This complements 17 weekly flights to London and Amsterdam and regular schedules to select destinations in Asia, including Dubai, Mumbai, Hong Kong and Bangkok.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner are scheduled for delivery beginning in 2008. Thirty-seven airlines have logged 461 orders and commitments worth more than US$ 68 billion at current list prices since the 787 launch in April 2004, making the Dreamliner the most successful commercial airplane launch in history.
afrol News - It is called "financial inclusion", and it is a key government policy in Rwanda. The goal is that, by 2020, 90 percent of the population is to have and actively use bank accounts. And in only four years, financial inclusion has doubled in Rwanda.
afrol News - The UN's humanitarian agencies now warn about a devastating famine in Sudan and especially in South Sudan, where the situation is said to be "imploding". Relief officials are appealing to donors to urgently fund life-saving activities in the two countries.
afrol News - Fear is spreading all over West Africa after the health ministry in Guinea confirmed the first Ebola outbreak in this part of Africa. According to official numbers, at least 86 are infected and 59 are dead as a result of this very contagious disease.
afrol News - It is already a crime being homosexual in Ethiopia, but parliament is now making sure the anti-gay laws will be applied in practical life. No pardoning of gays will be allowed in future, but activist fear this only is a signal of further repression being prepared.
afrol News / Africa Renewal - Ethiopia's ambitious plan to build a US$ 4.2 billion dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz region, 40 km from its border with Sudan, is expected to provide 6,000 megawatts of electricity, enough for its population plus some excess it can sell to neighbouring countries.
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