US to Vet Kenya Airways Employees Ahead of Nonstop Flights to New York

The United States embassy in Nairobi is set to vet Kenya Airways staff ahead of its inaugural nonstop flight to New York in October.

The US embassy has summoned over 820 employees of Kenya Airways for background checks as part of routine aviation safety measures, reports Business Daily. In a memo, Kenya Airways asked its staff to prepare for the vetting to be conducted on July 7th.

“In preparation for direct flights to New York we have reached an agreement with the American Embassy to facilitate the process for flight and cabin crew,” the memo said, citing the American embassy as the facilitator of the process.

“That said, no employee has been sacked or suspended,” the airline added.

595 flight attendants and five cabin managers are among the national carrier's employees lined up for the scrutiny.

The nonstop flights plan will allow KQ to fly from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in Nairobi at 10.30 p.m. daily to John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) in New York, a move expected to reduce travel time between the two cities by seven hours.

Kenya Airways Chief Executive Sebastian Mikosz said the airline expects an increase in its annual revenues by 10 per cent beginning 2019 as a result of the direct flights to US.

“We expect that our revenue will grow by 8 to 10 percent just by having this very big long haul flight. It will be a daily flight going into very important market. It’s a big operational and financial challenge,” Mr Mikosz said.

Each trip will have a maximum of 234 passengers, 204 being in the Economy and the rest in Business Class.