Nigeria has announced plans to revive its collapsed national carrier on the same day Uganda ordered two Airbus planes, stepping up pressure on Kenya Airways (KQ) whose mainstay is African routes.
Nigeria on Wednesday launched its national carrier dubbed Nigeria Air, which is set to take to the skies in December targeting the West African market.
Uganda Airlines also announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding for two A330-800neo Airbus planes for its long –haul network.
KQ is already facing strong headwinds on its African and Asian routes as the average fare has declined due to competition.
In its annual report for the year ended December 2017, the national carrier stated that more than half the revenue decline was as a result of the drop in average fares on the routes.
“This downward trend in fare is the result of increased competition and overcapacity on “Intra-Africa” and “AfricaAsia” traffic flows. The key competitors that Kenya Airways must contend with on these traffic flows include Ethiopian Airlines, RwandAir, Qatar Airways and Emirates,” said KQ in its financials.
Increased capacity by its competitors has already taken a chunk of the carrier’s revenue. The recent acquisition of planes by Uganda and Tanzania as well as the signing of a partnership between Ethiopian airlines and the Zambian government to revive the national airline for Zambia is only making the skies bumpier for the airline.
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