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Jambojet

Jambojet Limited is a Kenyan low-cost airline that started operations on 1 April 2014. It is a subsidiary of Kenya Airways and is headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya.[3]

History

Willem Alexander Hondius was appointed as CEO in September 2013, reporting to the board of directors, chaired by Ayisi Makatiani.[4] Before his appointment, Hondius was general manager for KLM Royal Dutch Airlines for Eastern Africa based in Nairobi since 2012. The airline aimed to directly employ 24 employees, hire 20 pilots from Kenya Airways, and source 30 crew members from third parties.[5]

Operations commenced on 1 April 2014.[6] The Kenya Civil Aviation Authority authorised the airline to fly to Burundi, Comoros, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Mayotte, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda.[7]

Corporate affairs

Ownership

The airline is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kenya Airways. Its equity consists of 5,000 shares each with a nominal value of KSh 20/=.[8]

Business trends

Jambojet's performance and financial figures are fully incorporated within the Kenya Airways Group report and accounts.

Available figures for Jambojet are shown below - until March 2017, accounting dates were for the year ending 31 March; this changed to year ending 31 December from 2017, to align with accounting dates for the parent company. (Note also: Jambojet commenced operations in April 2014; therefore start-up costs, but no income, arose in the financial year to March 2014.)

Destinations

As of January 2024, Jambojet flies to seven airports within Kenya as well as one international destination.[17] Jambojet suspended operations into Entebbe and Kigali in August 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[18] Jambojet is currently the largest domestic carrier in Kenya,[19] carrying over 1 million passengers in 2022[20] and projecting to carry at least 1.2 million passengers in 2023.

Fleet

Current fleet

As of August 2025, Jambojet operates the following aircraft:[27]

Historical fleet

The company has previously operated the following aircraft:

  • Boeing 737-300

See also

External links

References

  1. Bonface Otieno. Jambojet appoints finance chief Karanja Ndegwa as interim MD Business Daily Africa, 27 April 2020, retrieved 27 April 2020^
  2. JamboJet Overview www.linkedin.com, 2019-09-03, retrieved 2019-09-03^
  3. Linda Blachly. Kenya Airways appoints CEO of new Jambo Jet subsidiary Air Transport World, 12 September 2013, retrieved 26 February 2014^
  4. KQ picks CEO for low-cost subsidiary Business Daily Africa, 12 September 2013, retrieved 26 February 2014^
  5. WANGUI MAINA. KQ set to launch Sh3,000 fare carrier in April Business Daily Africa, 17 February 2014, retrieved 26 February 2014^
  6. Victoria Moores. Kenya Airways' low-cost arm Jambojet launches operations Air Transport World, 4 April 2014^
  7. Oliver Clark. Jambo Jet gains domestic and international route licences Flightglobal, 2 January 2014^
  8. 2013 Annual Report Kenya Airways, 2013, retrieved 27 February 2014^
  9. 2013 Annual Report Kenya Airways, retrieved 19 April 2015^
  10. Jambojet records satisfactory results since launch Kenya Broadcasting Corporation^
  11. 2015 Annual Report Kenya Airways^
  12. 2016 Annual Report Kenya Airways^
  13. 2017 Annual Report Kenya Airways^
  14. 2017 Annual Report Kenya Airways^
  15. Jambojet losses deepen on delayed delivery of planes Standard Digital, 2 July 2018^
  16. 2018 Annual Report Kenya Airways, 29 April 2019, retrieved 28 February 2020^
  17. Jambojet destinations 22 January 2024, retrieved 22 January 2024^
  18. COVID-19 Update 2 16 March 2020, retrieved 21 January 2024^
  19. Jambojet Attains 54% Domestic Air Market Share as they Mark World Tourism Day 27 September 2023, retrieved 21 January 2024^
  20. Jambojet flies over 1 million passengers in 2022, offers 1,000 tickets at Ksh 1,000 10 January 2023, retrieved 21 January 2024^
  21. Jambojet announces plans to begin operations to Goma and Llamu 4 August 2021, retrieved 21 January 2024^
  22. Stephanie Mutunga. Jambojet suspends Nairobi-Goma flights after M23 rebels announce seizure of key Eastern DRC city Capital News, 27 January 2025^
  23. Jambojet readies to start direct flights from Mombasa to Eldoret and Kisumu 31 August 2020, retrieved 21 January 2024^
  24. Low-cost carrier Jambojet diversifies into cargo operations with their De Havilland Canada Dash 8-Q400 aircraft 9 February 2022, retrieved 21 January 2024^
  25. Jambojet starts selling flight tickets to Kigali and Mogadishu 28 October 2019, retrieved 21 January 2024^
  26. JamboJet schedules Mombasa - Zanzibar July 2024 launch AeroRoutes, 29 December 2023, retrieved 17 January 2024^
  27. Global Airline Guide 2025 - Jambojet Airliner World, September 2025^
  28. Kenya's Jambojet to lease two Q400s from IFC ch-aviation, retrieved 2017-08-17^
  29. Kenya's low cost carrier Jambo Jet acquires new aircraft abcafricanews, 2017-05-31, retrieved 2017-11-30^
  30. Kenya's Jambojet preps for 1Q18 int'l debut; to quit jet ops ch-aviation^
  31. Jambojet Takes Flight with a New Dash 8-400 Aircraft, Catering to the growing demand in Air Travel 2 August 2023, retrieved 22 January 2024^