Following a drop in the number of passengers flying to New York, Kenya Airways (KQ) has reduced the number of flights on the route to two.
The move comes on the heels of summer coming to an end, which has seen the airline register low demand.
Kenya Airways says that the number of passengers has dropped to below 65 percent hence the removal of one flight to JF Kennedy, which was introduced in July.
Before the number of customers dwindled, KQ had enjoyed a good season with cabin factor recording over 70 percent between June and the end of August. This was because more travelers sought flights for the summer holidays.
“We are now in low season and demand for travel on the route has gone down. We have had to reduce the number of flights from three to two on the New York route starting this month,” KQ told the Business Daily.
According to the airline, because of the good belly cargo load, it is carrying, the route is still commercially viable even with the cabin factor of 60 percent.
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Back in February, KQ had reduced the number of flights on the route to one every week after the demand plummeted and failed to pick up since it resumed operations in November 2020, following fresh Covid-19 restrictions.
The frequency of flights to the US, however, was increased in June to 3 a week as demand for summer bookings picked up. This came as a relief to the airline that was struggling with low numbers due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Before KQ was grounded in early April 2020 following the outbreak of the COVID-19, it was operating five flights to New York.
The direct flights to the city commenced in 2018, coming as a relief to travelers since they could cut the journey to 15 hours on the long-haul route tapped as part of an effort to revive the airline’s fortunes.
The carrier had forecast its daily direct flights to the US would boost annual revenues by more than 10 percent in 2019 and 2020.
The long-haul route aimed to encourage more business and tourist travel, with the US being one of Kenya’s biggest source of visitors.
The US route is one of the crucial destinations for the national carrier as it plays a major role in connecting travelers who transit through Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).
Flights leaving Kenya to the US will be on Tuesday and Saturday.