National carrier Kenya Airways has expanded its fleet after adding a newly leased Boeing 737-800 passenger plane. The new plane was unveiled on Wednesday at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).
The Boeing 737-800 plane brings KQ’s fleet to a total of 35 planes. It has a capacity of 170 seats. KQ has acquired the plane through a lease agreement with Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE).
The Boeing 737-800 plane is known for its narrow body design. It is produced by American plane manufacturer Boeing at the company’s Renton factory in Washington.
The 737 was developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short routes. It retained the 707 fuselage width and six abreast seating but with two underwing low-bypass turbofan engines. These engines were produced by Pratt & Whitney.
The 737-800 comes from the third generation of the 737 series which was first introduced in 1993. The series includes the 737-600, 737-700, 737-800 and the 737-900. In addition, it includes the military C-40 and the P-8.
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Notably, it is after the this series that Boeing introduced the fourth generation of the 737 which now includes the 737 MAX series of the 737-7, 737-8, 737-9 and 737-10.
The 737-800 comes equipped with Split Scimitar Winglet technology, which is considered as an improvement on the Blended Winglet technology of the Boeing 737 NG planes. At the same time, the plane boasts of a modernized engine and improved aerodynamics, that combine to reduce fuel consumption per seat by an average of 9 to 14 percent compared with earlier 737 models.
The planes comes with a premium configuration of twelve premium seats in the first class section. These are divided into two premium seats per aisle. It then features the extended comfort section that has 24 seats in a configuration of three seats per aisle. The economy is the last section and it features up to 138 seats in a configuration of three seats per aisle.
