Nairobi — The Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) will on next week Saturday conduct its first test flight on the newly refurbished Terminal 1B at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).

KAA told Capital Business that the test flight will be conducted on 15 Oct 2022, to test its efficiency.

In January 2021, KAA embarked on a facelift project at the JKIA to improve Terminal 1B and 1C customer experience at a tune of Sh963 million, which were notorious for congestions and unfriendlier flight experiences.

The improvements were to be done on the check-in, security screening, retail operations as well as passenger lounge areas.

"There refurbishment and facelift of the T1B & 1C aim to align the passenger experience in these terminals to match what is offered at T1A,"

"The remodeling project is an integral part of the ongoing JKIA Customer Service Improvement Plan (CSIP) which was formulated from feedback from our stakeholders and customers," said KAA Managing Director Alex Gitari earlier.

JKIA and Moi International Airport are an important tourism routes for the country that attracts about 2.5 million visitors annually thus the need to maintain best quality standards.

The Ministry of Tourism said that the number of tourist arrivals more than doubled in the 8-month to August 2022, to 924, 812 from 483, 246 during the same period last year.

The growth comes at a time when the country's tourism sector is rebounding amid a global recovery.

Arrivals helped pushed tourism receipt from Sh83.16 billion to Sh167.10 billion between the period.

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During the renovation exercise, airlines operating from Terminal 1B and 1C were temporarily relocated to Terminal 1A and Terminal 2.