AirKenya (P2, Nairobi Wilson) has acquired a Eurocopter AS350 B3 helicopter from Airbus Helicopters (ECF, Marseilles) with 5Y-HNB (msn 4108) having arrived in East Africa this week.

Airline general manager Dino Bisleti said in a statement the helicopter will bolster the carrier's operations, as it continues to offer scheduled flights to major game parks and beach resorts in the country.

“The new helicopter can fly with both doors open offering the ultimate scenic flight for photographers and clientele who wish to experience safaris differently, that is, up-close and personal,” he said.

The helicopter will be used to offer flight packages including scenic flights of Nairobi heading towards the southern end of the Great Rift Valley (GRV) as well as to Lake Magadi, Kenya’s southern-most lake in the Eastern Rift Valley.

Airkenya also operates three DHC-6-300s, two Dash 7s, one Dash 8-100, and several Cessna (single turboprop) Grand Caravan 208Bs on scheduled and charter flights to twenty destinations across Kenya and Tanzania. It also avails aircraft for charter flights to Khartoum, Addis Ababa International, Asmara, Djibouti, and Mahé.