The serene lakeside city of Kisumu is about to have an international airport soon following upgrades undertaken by the Kenyan government.The extension of the Kisumu Airport runway and expansion of other facilities is going on according to plan. According to the airport manager, Mr Joseph Okumu, the project is halfway through and right on course.The project is expected to be complete by August.
Kenya Airports Authority is extending the length of the runway from the previous two kilometres to 3.3km. Initially, the runway was to be lengthened to 3km but this was revised to 3.3km.Kenyan aviation authorities are satisfied with the progress of the project and have confirmed that the extra 300m of the runway will be done, indicating that the Government is working out modalities of completing the added length.
Once the project is completed, the airport will handle Boeing 767s, Airbus 310 and 300, bigger aircraft which could previously not land or take off on the shorter runway. The apron area is also being enlarged and this, according to the airport manager, will allow cargo aircraft to land in Kisumu.
Aware that the runway is being extended, some investors are making enquiries about setting up operations at th improved facility. One of the companies, One Jet One, wants to start operating an Airbus 320 in August this year.Some charter flight companies have also expressed an interest in operating from the airport. This is apart from normal concessions like setting up hangars and godowns,according to Kenyan aviation authorities.
A model of how the Kisumu Airport will look like when completed later this year.
There is a firm that wants to start an aviation training school and a flying school. Other firms have expressed interest in starting ground handling business at the airport. Yet others want to build a five-star hotel at the airport. Thomsons Airways, the third largest airline operator by passenger traffic in the UK, has also enquired about the possibility of operating a Boeing 757 aircraft the lakeside airport.
Situated in the hub of the East African community,Kisumu Airport is expected to become a major aviation hub in the near future,interconnecting the various cities around the lake.
Related Story:Kisumu Airport Set for Revival
Related Story Kenyan leaders launch Kisumu International Airport
Related Story: Places to Visit in Mbita
Kenya Airports Authority is extending the length of the runway from the previous two kilometres to 3.3km. Initially, the runway was to be lengthened to 3km but this was revised to 3.3km.Kenyan aviation authorities are satisfied with the progress of the project and have confirmed that the extra 300m of the runway will be done, indicating that the Government is working out modalities of completing the added length.
Once the project is completed, the airport will handle Boeing 767s, Airbus 310 and 300, bigger aircraft which could previously not land or take off on the shorter runway. The apron area is also being enlarged and this, according to the airport manager, will allow cargo aircraft to land in Kisumu.
Aware that the runway is being extended, some investors are making enquiries about setting up operations at th improved facility. One of the companies, One Jet One, wants to start operating an Airbus 320 in August this year.Some charter flight companies have also expressed an interest in operating from the airport. This is apart from normal concessions like setting up hangars and godowns,according to Kenyan aviation authorities.
There is a firm that wants to start an aviation training school and a flying school. Other firms have expressed interest in starting ground handling business at the airport. Yet others want to build a five-star hotel at the airport. Thomsons Airways, the third largest airline operator by passenger traffic in the UK, has also enquired about the possibility of operating a Boeing 757 aircraft the lakeside airport.
Situated in the hub of the East African community,Kisumu Airport is expected to become a major aviation hub in the near future,interconnecting the various cities around the lake.
Related Story:Kisumu Airport Set for Revival
Related Story Kenyan leaders launch Kisumu International Airport
Related Story: Places to Visit in Mbita
This is going to open western Kenya and improve kisumu. We should use this opportunity to revive fish, horticulture and tourism industries. Proper planning for the city is needed
This is surely an economic accelerator for western Kenya... the government should go ahead and improve on the roads too. it will make no sense for me to have a fortyfive minutes flight from Nairobi and take one hour to get to the city centre because of traffic jam along Busia highway.
This is amajor achievement that is long overdue.it should ope up western kenya that has suffered neglect for decades.there is alo in store for kisumu and its enviroments
I like the new airport however honestly speaking it looks too small even for a start, in 3 years traffic will exhaust it, wait n see but am proud as a resident of the lake side city.
Hi there--I'm a student from California and I'll be moving to Kisumu in January for coursework on public health and tropical diseases. I'm also a pilot! Any General Aviation going on? I'd love to go up with someone while I'm there (January-May). Thanks!
this is cool but it should have been bigger you know! and hoping that council will always and will improve on the lights heading to the airport from the town center, road and other infrastructure...So that we see a better Kisumu, a modern kisumu...I luv Kisumu, lets build it... let it shine among the lake side towns, God bless Kisumu
Anonymous,
Kisumu is fast emerging as a future aviation hub;all depends on the economic gains that we expect to emerge from regional integration;political stability and investments in the countless unexploited opportunities in the lakeside city.
@Darya,
The following airlines service Kisumu city:
-540 Air Services(Fly540)
-Air Leasing Services(ALS)
-East African Safari Air Express
-Executive Turbine
-JetLink Express
-Kenya Airways
If you would love to go up in the air with one of these,then you can try your luck by applying in advance and understand the terms(also,it's not quite easy getting a work permit).But I bet you've got more luck in Nairobi's Wilson Airport(one of the busiest in Africa) where countless airlines and charter flights operate from.
They should at least make it bigger. After 3-5 years, they will need another expansion. Just wait and see
Honestly, I think this airport is a bit small for a city of Kisumu stature bearing in mind the coming to effect of the EAC Free Market Zone. I am with Anthony on this, I see the government going back to the drawing boards to expand it again! But above all, I think the expansion of the airport was long a overdue and will definately have a positive ripple effect on the economy of the region! Kisumu Dala!
Thanks for given such a nice blog, it is very nice and i like it so much.
Taxi To Heathrow Airport