748 Air Services (IHO, Nairobi Wilson) has announced plans to resume scheduled passenger flights in May 2026, re-entering Kenya’s domestic aviation market after a three-year period of restructuring.
The airline’s scheduled service brand, Fly748, will connect Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta daily with coastal destinations Mombasa and Ukunda/Diani Beach using DHC-8-Q400s.
The carrier said the relaunch follows internal reforms to improve efficiency, safety compliance, and customer service, undertaken in coordination with the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority. The airline holds Basic Aviation Risk Standard Gold Status, a safety accreditation under the Flight Safety Foundation.
The move is expected to boost capacity and competition on key domestic routes, particularly along the coast, where demand is driven by tourism and business travel.
748 Air Services suspended scheduled operations on March 1, 2023, to focus on humanitarian flights, at the time the core business of the company. The airline previously operated passenger flights from Nairobi Jomo Kenyatta to Mombasa, Malindi, Ukunda, Kisumu, and the Maasai Mara.
The resumption of scheduled operations suggests that the humanitarian‑only model has become harder to sustain through the downturn in aid‑related demand.
The suspension of United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funded programmes in early 2025 impacted Kenya-based airlines by sharply reducing demand from US‑sponsored NGOs, United Nations‑linked partners, and donor‑driven humanitarian operations that previously relied on frequent domestic and regional flights originating from or transiting Nairobi.
748 Air Services was founded in 1995 to support the United Nations' Operation Lifeline Sudan for relief and humanitarian mission support in South Sudan, Somalia, and East and Central Africa, including emergency food supplies, extraction of humanitarian staff in conflict zones, and providing support equipment.
ch-aviation has contacted 748 Air Services for comment.
According to ch-aviation data, the airline's fleet comprises seven DHC-8-Q400s (of which five are active) and five DHC-8-100s (of which four are active). At last two DHC-8-100s and four DHC-8-Q400s are dedicated to the United Nations Humanitarian Air Service.
