KQ can reclaim its lost glory with radical surgery

NAIROBI: The current probe by a parliamentary committee into what ails Kenya Airways has been quite revealing.

As an international trader, I have used more than 50 airlines in the last two decades. However, I have used Kenya Airways the most during this period. I was there when it was a force to reckon with and lived up to its motto as the Pride of Africa. I have also witnessed its gradual fall from grace.

Also, as the chairman of a group of 15,000 Kenya-Dubai-China traders who have flown KQ numerous times, I have heard first-hand accounts of experiences with the airline — the good, the bad and the ugly. It is unfortunate that the airline that previously had all the hallmarks of being a dominant force in the continent is struggling to stay afloat.

Few would deny that the national carrier plays an important role in the economy. It contributes a substantial amount of the much-needed foreign exchange vital to maintaining the balance in the economy.

As the biggest airline in East Africa, it is the engine of local, regional and international trade. It also plays a key role in tourism — as the flag carrier, it is naturally charged with bringing in foreign visitors. Further, it employs 4,000 people, and 10,000 others depend on it for business.

FUNDAMENTAL QUESTION

KQ is such an important entity to our economic interests that no effort should be spared in reviving it. As we seek to diagnose and dissect what went wrong, we must ask when and how the storm began to strike KQ.

Until more recently, it dominated Kenyan and African routes. This meant most passengers, for lack of options, were content with its services, however lacklustre. But with the entry of new players from the Middle East, like Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways, and African carriers, such as Ethiopian Airlines and RwandAir, KQ’s smooth ride came to an abrupt halt. As competition intensified, the airline increasingly lost its market share.

The new players not only offered cheaper tickets, but their services were an improvement on KQ’s. Passengers left the national carrier for the new kids on the block, contributing to their rapid expansion.

The Big Three — Emirates, Qatar, Etihad — have not only deeply eaten into KQ’s market share, but have gone on to dominate in Asia, US, Australia and the Far East. They have achieved this by mainly redefining the concept of customer service and taking passenger comfort to a new level.

Even airlines from the US, the largest economy globally, are now crying over the issue of extremely stiff competition from the Big Three, which together with other Asian airlines now take 80 per cent of aviation’s top awards every year.

These operators, flush with cash thanks to their huge reserves of oil, represent the future face of flying.

However, KQ has the capacity to give to give these players a run for their money should it put its house in order.

Perhaps where the airline has got it all wrong is in pricing. Its ticket prices are comparatively too high, and on some routes, the difference is as high as 200 per cent. These exorbitant prices and compromised service have compelled people to give the airline a wide berth.

The logic informing this is hard to understand. Management says its tickets are expensive because passengers book late. This thinking does not hold water. The airline should work around the unique behaviours of different categories of customers, as other airlines do.

The marketing department has received the flak from the public, especially on social platforms, over the expensive air fares, but the unit to blame is actually the commercial unit, which sets the ticket prices. Also, the airline allocates abysmally low resources to its marketing department. Other airlines dedicate a lot of cash to market their services, a path KQ must follow.

The airline also has to find a way to accommodate small and micro enterprises that deal with exports and imports. The current relationship between this group and KQ is not cordial. Rather than courting them, KQ has taken the bold, but misguided, decision to fly with 40 per cent of its seats empty on some crucial routes. Other airlines have readily embraced these traders by offering them flexible flying rules.

One of the most frequent problems experienced by KQ travellers are delays and cancellation of scheduled flights. This poses a huge inconvenience to customers, and takes a huge toll on KQ by way of compensation.

It is wrong for KQ to blame the competition for its woes. Our market is liberalised and competition is meant to work to the advantage of the consumer. By blaming its rivals, KQ is saying it is unable to outwit its competitors in the game of innovation.

The writer is chairman, Kenya-China-Dubai Traders Association. [email protected]