KQ Introduces New Economy Class Seat Product for its Long-Haul Routes

Kenya Airways (KQ) has introduced a new seat product- Economy Comfort, which is set to enhance customer comfort and experience.

Economy Comfort features increased seat pitch of 9cm more than the average Economy Class seats. The Economy Comfort seats are located in the first three rows of Economy Class hence availing 27 seats per aircraft.

Additionally, passengers travelling in these seats will enjoy more benefits such as a reserved overhead cabin for their carry-on luggage, special inflight products and priority disembarking from the aircraft.

KQ has been implementing different strategies to boost its revenues and retain a competitive edge in the market all geared towards a turnaround of the business.

The product offering will support the airline’s network expansion initiatives. KQ now has more long-haul routes on its network such as New York, Rome and Geneva in addition to Amsterdam, London, Paris, Bangkok and Guangzhou.

“Due to the high demand for Extra Legroom Seats in Economy Class since the introduction of Preferred Seat Selection in Economy last year, we have decided to enhance the service even further. Our new Economy Comfort with increased seat pitch will ensure our guests have an additional option on how to travel. The B787 Dreamliner aircrafts have therefore been modified accordingly to what we are calling Economy Comfort,” KQ Chief Commercial Officer Ursula Silling said during the announcement.

Ancillary services are becoming a bigger part of KQ’s revenue streams.

“Last year, we made a key step in growing our Ancillary footprint by introducing the enhanced number of extra seat propositions and significantly growing our distribution scope to all relevant direct booking channels. Going forward we see this income stream making a larger contribution to the overall operations,” Ursula added.

The upgrade of the 27 Economy Class seats to Economy Comfort makes it first of its kind to be experienced among the African carriers.