Kenya Airways made history yesterday with its debut Nairobi-New York nonstop flight.
Covering a distance of more than 13,713km, and taking 15 hours 25 minutes on the outbound trip, the new flight is not only the first commercially scheduled non-stop service between Kenya and the US, but also ranks as one of the longest flights in the world at seventh place.
The route is also KQ’s longest flight. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner left Nairobi for New York on Sunday night some minutes past 11pm after it was flagged off by President Uhuru Kenyatta and touched down at the JFK International Airport at 2.45pm local time.
On board were 234 passengers - 30 in business class and 204 on economy class.
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According to the company’s website, the dreamliner offers several jetlag fighting features including higher cabin pressure and humidity as well as dynamic lighting sequences and bigger windows.
The dreamliner will also have four pilots and 12 attendants. The plane consumes 85,000 litres of fuel on a one-way trip.
Among prominent figures on the flight included Foreign Affairs CS Monica Juma, Transport CS James Macharia, Kenya Airways chief executive Sebastian Mikosz and chairman Michael Joseph.
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Those in the economy class paid Sh89,000 for a return ticket compared to Sh260,000 to get a business class ticket.
The route represents both a new chapter in aviation and the airline venturing into next generation jets like the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner in order to connect cities that otherwise would not be possible.
The 15-hour flight further puts KQ on the global air travel map between Kenya and the US, as flights from Kenya to the US took up to 22 hours through a stop over in Europe or Asia.