Govt. to upgrade JKIA terminals in modernization drive

The government has hired a team of consultants to upgrade airport terminals at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) to handle both arriving and departing passengers.

The move is part of efforts to commercialize airport operations by enhancing the traveler experience.

Transport Principal Secretary Irungu Nyakera said the current airport design does not appeal to travelers and the lack of amenities such as shops and hotels has dampened the airport experience.

“That way you can have other facilities and have a much better experience. 80 percent of passengers are actually transit passengers and so if we don’t have an airport that actually is designed to make a transit passenger feel welcomed, we are failing in that regard,” Mr Nyakera said in an interview with Citizen Digital.

JKIA’s terminal 1A is the only modern terminal and is currently occupied by Kenya Airways and its Sky Team partners.

The country’s largest airport has undergone several changes since 2013 when a fire gutted down the arrival terminal.

However with plans to make Kenya an aviation hub, the government expects upgrades to JKIA will bode well for the Kenya Airports Authority to make money.

KAA Managing Director Jonny Andersen, while taking office, alluded to the fact that the authority needed to commercialize airports under its management.

“For me it’s about setting the KAA team for the future and also focusing a lot on the commercial side of the airport industry because we are not only an infrastructure provider but a business as well,” Mr Andersen said on November 21.

Mr Nyakera said construction of a second runway is also expected to commence in May to boost the airport’s aircraft handling capability.

“We have already secured funding for the consultancy work. The consultants have been on board since June and will be presenting the final plan in terms of cost, design and the feasibility for it on sixth of December,” he said.

The government ditched plans for the construction of the Greenfields terminal in favor for the construction of a second runway.

The focus has now shifted to have a second runway to accommodate increased aircraft traffic and offer redundancy in cases of emergency.

This was highlighted on Sunday when a plane from Somalia made an emergency landing at JKIA leading to the closure of the runway for over six hours.