Wednesday August 5, 2020
Nairobi — Qatar Airways has resumed 14 weekly flights to Kenya's capital Nairobi.
A statement from the airline said the flights resumed on August 3.
The airline said it remained one of the largest carriers during the pandemic, with a steady schedule that never dropped below 30 destinations.
Qatar connects many passengers seamlessly via its award-winning home and hub, Hamad International Airport (HIA) to key destinations via its rapidly expanding network including Europe, Americas, Asia and Pacific via Doha.
Qatar began scheduled services from Nairobi on 17 November 2005 and Mombasa on 11 December 2018. It recently resumed flights to key destinations in Africa including Addis Ababa, Dar es Salaam, Djibouti, Kilimanjaro, Zanzibar and Tunis.
"We are delighted to resume flights to Nairobi, totalling our flights to 33 weekly flights to Africa with eight destinations," said Bennet Stephens, Qatar Airways Acting Vice-President, Middle East, Africa & Pakistan.
He said Qatar Airways continues to maintain an expanding schedule with now more than 500 weekly flights to over 75 destinations.
Even during the pandemic, he said, Qatar Airways was the largest global carrier to maintain its schedule in taking people home with the highest safety measures.
"Our wide network of flights during these challenging times has ensured we have kept up to date with the latest in international airport procedures. We also implemented the most advanced safety & hygiene measures onboard our aircraft and in our home and hub at Hamad International Airport which was recently voted the Best Airport in the Middle East for the sixth year in a row," he said.
During COVID-19 pandemic, Qatar Airways Cargo continued operating its scheduled twice-weekly with A330 freighters and four times weekly with Boeing 777 freighters to Nairobi along with freight charters.
These flights provided much-required capacity, supporting exporters and importers and bringing in essential medical supplies. With the resumption of passenger flights to Nairobi, the cargo carrier will operate 20 flights in total, offering more than 700 tonnes of cargo capacity each week, each way.
The airline said it has also enhanced its onboard safety measures for passengers and cabin crew by introducing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for cabin crew which includes gloves, face masks, safety glasses and a new protective gown that is fitted over their uniforms.
"A modified service that reduces interactions between passengers and the crew inflight has also been introduced," the airline said.
With the new measures, onboard, all Qatar Airways passengers are now provided with a complimentary protective kit. Inside a ziplock pouch they will find a single-use surgical face mask, large disposable powder-free gloves and an alcohol-based hand sanitiser gel.
The airline has also introduced disposable face shields for adults and children. Passengers traveling from Hamad International Airport (HIA) will receive their face shields at the check-in counters, whereas at other destinations, the face shields will be distributed at the boarding gates.
And to ensure travelers can plan their travel with peace of mind, the airline has extended its booking policies to offer even more choice to its passengers. The airline will allow unlimited date changes, and passengers can change their destination as often as they need if it is within 5,000 miles of the original destination.
The airline will not charge any fare differences for travel completed before 31 December 2020, after which fare rules will apply. All tickets booked for travel up to 31 December 2020 will be valid for two years from the date of issuance.