Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, Nairobi

Jomo Kenyatta Airport, Nairobi

If you’re travelling from Europe or North America to Kenya, you’ll likely fly in through Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. Formerly Nairobi International Airport, Jomo Kenyatta International Airport is Kenya’s Largest Aviation facility and the busiest Airport in Central Africa. It is the 7th busiest airport in Africa. The airport is situated in Embakasi, a suburb to the south-east of Nairobi 15km from Nairobi’s Central Business District and at the edge of the city’s built-up area. By African standards, it has pretty good facilities. It has 2 international terminals and it’s easy to walk between them. A third terminal is mainly used for domestic flights.

Jomo Kenyatta International Airport gets its name from Kenya’s first president after independence, Jomo Kenyatta. It was opened in 1958. The Mombasa Highway runs adjacent to the Airport and is the main route of access between Nairobi and the airport. The airport is the main hub of Kenya Airways and Five Forty Aviation. The airport is served by one terminal building constructed in the 1970s.
The former “Embakasi” terminal, now used for cargo and for a Kenya Air Force training facility, was constructed before the 1960s. Statistics from the Aviation Authority say that the airport handled 4,861,706 passengers in 2007.

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Other Airport Facilities at Jomo Kenyatta

Facilities include a huge number of tax-free shops, bars, restaurants and several VIP lounges. There is also a cyber café offering Internet access in the departures area, and available also are fax, printer and copy services. The airport has 100 long-term and 900 short-term parking spaces. Car hire is possible from Avis, Budget, Europcar and Hertz, among others. You can change money at the currency exchange, or take Kenyan shillings (KSH) from the ATM in the hall, near the entrance. 100 KSH is approximately 1.60 US$ or 1.00 Euro. Banking facilities, taxis, car hire, tour operators and hotel booking offices are conveniently situated at the arrivals. Scheduled bus service to and from the town centre is available at unit 1 and 2 bus stops.
However, there are no hotels at the airport, but Hilton Nairobi Hotel (Tel: (020) 250 000), Grand Regency Hotel (Tel: (020) 211 199), Fairview Hotel (Tel: (020) 288 1000) and the Nairobi Serena Hotel (Tel: (020) 282 2000) are all located in Nairobi, 20 minutes from the airport.

Airport Plans / News

As the number of annual passengers at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport has grown to over 4 million from the current capacity of 2.5 million, the airport has considered expansions over the last years. On the 14th October 2005, the Kenya Airports Authority announced their plans to expand Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. This massive expansion project that will increase capacity almost three-fold started in 2006. Taxiway and aircraft parking areas will be increased substantially. Arrivals and departures areas will be separated, and the terminal will be thoroughly revamped. The expansion project will increase this to 9 million passengers. The project is to cost the Kenya Airports Authority $100 million. The World Bank will provide $10 million. The first phase of upgrading commenced on September 29, 2006.

Airlines Flying to Jomo Kenyatta

Air companies flying internationally to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport include Dutch KLM, British Airways, Swiss Air, Air India, South African Airways, African Express Airways, Air Arabia, SN Brussels Airlines, Egypt Air, Cameroon Airlines, Emirates, Air Uganda, Ethiopian Airlines, Daallo Airlines, Rwandair Express, Sudan Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Swiss International Airlines, Qatar Airways and of course Kenya Airways.

Cargo Airlines to Jomo Kenyatta

• Air France Cargo
• EgyptAir Cargo
• Kenya Airways Cargo
• Evergreen International Airlines
• Simba Air Cargo
• Lufthansa Cargo
• Singapore Airlines Cargo
• Cargolux