Kenya Airways has expanded its cooperation with KLM. The expanded joint venture will be a significant boost to the existing benefit-sharing model between the two carriers. This far reaching cooperation for both passenger and cargo business will allow KLM and Kenya Airways to jointly implement further commercial synergies, optimize networks and schedules to better jointly serve these markets and further enhance customer experience and travel options.
The expanded cooperation will be effective from January 1, 2014, and the two carriers will add four new routes to the current arrangement, thus increasing the total KLM – Kenya Airways joint venture to a total of six routes.
From next year, the cooperation will be expanded through the addition of the London – Nairobi; Amsterdam –Entebbe/ Kigali route; Amsterdam – Lusaka and Harare routes; and the Amsterdam- Kilimanjaro/Dar-es-Salam route, the latter subject to regulatory approval. This will bring the total number of frequencies operated jointly by Kenya Airways and KLM to approximately 44 weekly flights with combined revenues exceeding US$500 million.
The enhanced cooperation is geared towards optimizing the longstanding relationship, with the ultimate objective of doubling the amount of frequencies between Europe and the East African continent. Titus Naikuni, Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Kenya Airways said, “I am proud of the longstanding and successful partnership between KLM and Kenya Airways, both as shareholders, and also business partners. We saw a tremendous development of our route network particularly in the early years of the JV by focusing our attention through only limited hubs in Europe, allowing our expansion in Africa. This next phase consolidates our capability to serve our guests across the region and into Europe and beyond.”
Pieter Elbers, Chief Operating Officer, KLM said, “We are proud of this next milestone in our cooperation with our long time strategic partner Kenya Airways. This long anticipated expansion of the joint venture will enable us to take our cooperation to a new level. Furthermore this new step will provide our passengers with a more extensive network in this important part of the world.”
The Air France KLM Group currently operates 42 destinations in Africa, besides holding a 26.73 per cent stake in Kenya Airways.
