Other Middle East and Africa Frequent Flyer Programs - Want your thoughts and experiences on Kenya Airways

So soon to be in E Africa (Rwanda, Kenya, maybe Tanzania) and wanted your thoughts about flying on Kenya Airways. I'm mostly interested in them because of the Northwest Worldperk options (award tickets and earning miles, though no elite qualifying miles). They are in the process of joining Skyteam I believe too, but no word when....

Routes that I or friends would travel would include IST-NBO, AMS-NBO, NBO-KGL in coach.

One worry is the recent State Dept warning on Kenya from Aug 10 ,2006

The Department recommends that private American citizens in Kenya evaluate their personal security situation in light of continuing terrorist threats and the limited ability of the Kenyan authorities to detect and deter such acts. Terrorist actions may include suicide operations, bombings, attacks on civil aviation, and attacks on maritime vessels in or near Kenyan ports

http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_923.html

In my experience, KQ is generally good to excellent in C class, and pretty good in Y. It is certainly no worse than most western airlines in Y, and C class on the 777 is superior to what most competitors offer when it comes to seating and pitch.

I've never had any concerns whatsoever about my safety in Kenya, but I guess that's a matter of perception as much as of reality.

Johan

Any other thoughts about flying say from Kigali to Tanzania (DAR or ZNZ) via NBO on KQ?

KQ is 40% owned by KLM IIRC.

I've been flying around Africa for the past 4 years and KQ is my airline of choice. I've never felt unsafe in Kenya. KQ are usually on time which is a big plus with the inevitable connections.

I'm lucky enough to travel business most of the time and that is usually pretty good. However, I had the misfortune of travelling from AMS to NBO in economy a month ago and it was truly the most uncomfortable flight I've ever experienced. Legroom was awful due to individual entertainment units and 2 of 4 toilets in the cabin were out of order for a packed flight.

To my knowledge, KQ is one of 3 IATA safety accredited airlines on the continent (SAA and Egyptian being the others I think). The Flying Blue miles are also nice :)

To my knowledge, KQ is one of 3 IATA safety accredited airlines on the continent (SAA and Egyptian being the others I think). The Flying Blue miles are also nice :)

I would think Ethiopian (ET) is as well.

I flew KQ from Douala to Nairobi (the equator route) and found it quite pleasant in Business class. C Class on a 737 is equivalent to North American First class, so nothing like johan rebel's experience on a 777 but perfectly OK.

As far as safety in Kenya is concerned, I would worry much more about crime than terrorism. Crime is a significant problem in Nairobi.

So I bought a $450 one way ticket from Kigali to Nirobi onwards to Zanzibar. Well the first flight changed about 20 times in the month prior to the flight, sometimes the flight time changing a few minutes sometimes more...finally it was cancelled and I was rebooked for a much later flight....

I ended up cancelling the ticket since I was fed up with them, buying a $180 flight from Kigali directly to Kilimanjaro on Rwanda Air Express. Not a bad little airline...

So I bought a $450 one way ticket from Kigali to Nirobi onwards to Zanzibar. Well the first flight changed about 20 times in the month prior to the flight, sometimes the flight time changing a few minutes sometimes more...finally it was cancelled and I was rebooked for a much later flight....

I ended up cancelling the ticket since I was fed up with them, buying a $180 flight from Kigali directly to Kilimanjaro on Rwanda Air Express. Not a bad little airline...

Admit that in 2006 I did my darndest to avoid Rwanda Air Express. JNB to Kigali, SAA flies once a week but not the dates I needed to ticket for. So booked KQ via NBO and had to overnight in one direction in order to avoid the KQ codeshare operated by Rwanda Air Express. (Das was another option, egads! :o As well as a 2-stop on Ethiopian that didn't appeal.)

Ticketing was a bit of a pain. Couldn't use any of the online booking engines to issue the ticket. Called KQ and was told that they'd make the reservation, but they didn't take credit cards so I'd have to send in a check.. wait for the check to clear... then they'd mail a paper ticket.

Cut down on the wait time/need for checks to actually clear by having Randy's travel agency handle things, I believe travel agents deal with the KQ LA office rather than NY. In any case, I received paper handwritten tickets forwarded on from Randy's agency, plus he takes credit cards of course, well worth the booking fee to me for them to handle.

KQ is a nice airline IMHO and would be my choice in Africa after SAA. While Nairobi is a bit of a worry in terms of crime, I'd rather be there than many parts of Africa, and even many parts of South Africa for that matter. Just MHO.

Be careful, I had my carryon bag stolen from the overhead compartment on a flight. I had to put it somewhere away from my seat as there was no space nearby. When I was deplaning and went for my bag, it was completely gone.

Does anyone know what I should do in this situation? or am I out of luck?

I've flown KQ DXB-NBO on 767 in C and NBO-JNB in C on 737-800. Both were excellent flights, on time. 767 of course has the WBC seats with 70" pitch and complete lie-flat. NBO is not a great airport, but I've been in worse. Overall, KQ is a good operation.

I've flown KQ DXB-NBO on 767 in C and NBO-JNB in C on 737-800. Both were excellent flights, on time. 767 of course has the WBC seats with 70" pitch and complete lie-flat. NBO is not a great airport, but I've been in worse. Overall, KQ is a good operation.

I'll be flying JNB-NBO-JNB in J on 738 and ZNZ-NBO in Y on E170. Can anyone suggest seats?

On the 738, what are the best seats? Does the bulkhead have more or less room than the other rows? What's the best seat on the E170?

also, what is KQ's carry-on policy in J? Can I carry my standard LHR approved 22in roller and a small laptop bag?

KQ has a few issues and seems to be slipping a bit. Delays are becoming the norm and the transit desk in Nairobi can be a bit of a nightmare with mobs of people. Regarding safety, as far as I know they never released the findings from the investigation of the crash a couple years ago from Yaounde to Nairobi although rumors about the pilot are floating around on the web and not reassuring. I've flown that route so have been particularly interested in reading about the follow up. However, they are the best airline flying in East Africa and so you don't have a lot of choices. I'd give them a solid 2 stars myself, and maybe even throw in an extra half star if I was feeling generous.

I hope my response does not come too late!

I'll be flying JNB-NBO-JNB in J on 738 Can anyone suggest seats? Does the bulkhead have more or less room than the other rows?I flew NBO-JNB-NBO earlier this month. 73W (737-700) out, 738 back. As a great fan of old-fashioned, wide and cushy seats, I like both aircraft, but prefer the softer 73W seats. I'm not very partial to bulkhead seats, and have no experience of the ones in these aircraft, but it did look like there was less legroom than further back. I usually go for row 2 or 3, avoiding row 4 simply because it is right in front of the cabin divider. Whether you go for a window or aisle seat will depend on personal preference, and perhaps on whether you are on a day or night flight.

On the way back I found myself in a seat with a broken footrest. J was full, so I could not move. Sent a brief e-mail to KQ, got a reply the next day with an offer of 3,000 FB miles.

also, what is KQ's carry-on policy in J? Can I carry my standard LHR approved 22in roller and a small laptop bag?I guess they must have a policy, but looking at what other pax bring on board it does not seem to be strictly enforced. In fact, it is a very good idea to board early, because many economy pax, wise from experience, stuff their bags in the J class overhead lockers as they pass through the cabin. On both my flights the J pax struggled to find space for their stuff.

I don't check in luggage, and travel with a very small backpack, and a 75-liter canvas bag. The latter is rarely more than one-third full, and usually weighs no more than 10 kgs. Because it is soft, and the contents are not fragile, I can squeeze it in almost anywhere.

When I checked in at JNB, this bag was weighed and approved for carry-on. Nevertheless, I was chased all the way down the very long gangway, and even pursued onto the aircraft, by a KQ ground agent who insisted on confiscating my bag. I completely ignored her and put the bag in the overhead locker, whilst the purser told the GA to lay off. It was hilarious, because at the very same time other pax were dragging huge bags on board, one was even pulling two trunk-size rollaboards along each of which only just fit into the overhead compartments.

Johan

Flew KQ recently from DAR to LOS in C-class. Excellent service, good seats, okay food. Was a very comfortable flight. No complaints really.