Jambojet announces regional expansion, plans four additional aircraft

Jambojet, a low-cost subsidiary of Kenya Airways, based in Nairobi, is embarking on a domestic and regional expansion. Already, the airline has in place the regulatory approvals to fly to Entebbe, Addis Ababa, Dar es Salaam, Zanzibar, Kilimanjaro, Mwanza, Kigali, Juba and Bujumbura.

Last year, the Kenyan Government applied, on Jambojet’s behalf, for additional rights to fly to Rwanda, Ethiopia, Sudan, Congo, Tanzania and Burundi.

To achieve this expansion the airline intends to purchase four Bombardier Q400 aircraft, that is two used examples this year and two new aircraft next year.

On Thursday, Jambojet flew the first of its new routes with an international flight to Uganda. On arrival in Entebbe, Willem Hondius, Jambojet’s CEO, announced the airline’s expansion plans.

Hondius said “we are hopeful that by the end of the year we shall have started flights to at least two more countries. To expand, we need to increase our capacity. We shall therefore get four more aircraft by early next year, increasing our fleet size to eight".

Hondius confirmed that the airline cannot afford to buy the additional aircraft outright. Instead it is looking at either financial loans of US$ 100 million, or an operational lease which is what it uses for its existing fleet.

The new Nairobi – Entebbe route has two return flights daily. As an introductory promotion, one-way tickets are priced at 11,330 Kenyan Shillings (about US$ 110).