Aircraft Fleet

In 1998, our operation fleet is as follows:

Maintenance

Except for overhaul of the engines on the larger aircraft all maintenance is carried out in-house by the company's engineering section which is a workstation approved by the American Federal Aviation Authority (AKXY093K), the British Civil Aviation Authority (A1/8692/81), as well as the local Directorate of Civil Aviation (K/1A/29/82), and the Tanzanian Directorate of Civil Aviation (A1/CA/1.93)

DE HAVILLAND DASH 7

At a maximum take-off weight of 44,000 lbs, the Dash 7 is the largest aircraft in the Airkenya fleet. It was built in the 1980's by Boeing Canada, a De Havilland division, and introduced to our fleet in June 1997.
It is powered by four 1120 shaft horsepower Pratt & Whitney turboprop engines, is pressurised and has a maximum capacity of 50 passengers or 10,700 lbs of cargo.
It can fly to a maximum altitude of 25,000 feet above sea level and has a range of nearly 1,200 miles.
Its most impressive feature is the STOL (Short Take-Off and Landing) capability which allows it to be operated into short and rough airstrips common to Africa.
The low noise level in the cabin and the quietness of the engines has earned the Dash 7 the title "The quietest airliner in the world."
The Dash 7's are mostly seen on our Nairobi-Mara services but also fly to and from Nairobi, Lamu and Mombasa.

FOKKER F27-200

The Fokker F27 is a high-wing, pressurized twin-engine turboprop with a capacity for 40 passengers in a flexible cabin layout.
It is certified to fly at altitudes up to 22000 feet at a speed of 250 mph and has excellent handling characteristics in extreme weather conditions.
Airkenya primarily operates the Fokker F 27 on its coast schedule and private charters within East Africa.

SHORTS 360-300

The Shorts 360 is a high wing non-pressurized twin-engine turboprop with a capacity of 36 passengers and one cabin crew. The AirKenya Shorts is configured for 33 seats considerably increasing leg room to provide comfortable accommodation. The spacious interior, big windows and colourful decor give it enormous passenger appeal.
It has a cruising speed of 220 mph and operates up to an altitude of 12,000 feet above sea level.
The first of the Shorts 360 was acquired in May 1995 and the second one in November of the same year. They have mainly been utilized for the Lamu and Mombasa routes but also serve two airfields in the Mara and Amboseli.

BEECHCRAFT KING AIR 200

A truly versatile aircraft, the King Air is advertised as the "go anywhere, do anything workhorse of the skies" by its manufacturer, Raytheon Aircraft (Beechcraft) of the USA.
It is powered by two 850 shaft horsepower Pratt &Whitney turboprop engines and has a maximum take-off weight of 12,500 lbs.
Its versatility lies in its ability to fly "with the airliners" at 31,000 feet for distances as far as 1,600 miles at speeds of up to 290 mph, or do the small hops into short rough airstrips.
It can seat up to 12 passengers in an "economy" type configuration or 8 passengers in the executive layout complete with leather armchairs, coffee bar and toilet!
Some examples of the non-stop sectors the King Air is capable of are Nairobi-Harare (Zimbabwe), Nairobi - Seychelles, Nairobi - Antananarivo (Madagascar).
This aircraft is mostly used on our charter services but can be called upon to supplement any of our routes.

DE HAVILLAND TWIN OTTER 300 & 200

The Twin Otter was built by De Havilland Canada as a rugged STOL (Short Take-Off and Landing) aircraft capable of operating in the harshest of conditions in Northern Canada and the Arctic. This makes it ideal for the short and often rough airstrips of Kenya. (If required, the Otter can actually land and take-off in distances as short as 200m !)
It is powered by two 620 shaft horsepower Pratt & Whitney turboprop engines, has a maximum take-off weight of 12,500 lbs and carries a maximum of 19 passengers. It is unpressurised and therefore limited to cruise altitudes of below 12,000 feet above sea-level.
The Twin Otter will be seen flying on all the routes operated, both scheduled and chartered, by Airkenya.