Kenya Airways reported its first half-year profit in ten years on Monday thanks to rising passenger numbers. The airline expressed optimism that it can break even for the full year.

During the January-June period, the airline posted a profit of 513 million Kenyan shillings (4 million US dollars), effectively offsetting the 21.7 billion shillings loss from the first half of 2023.

In a briefing, Chief Executive Officer Allan Kilavuka said the company was finalising talks with a strategic equity investor, but no specific details were disclosed.

Kenya Airways, one of Africa’s three largest airlines, faced bankruptcy in 2018 after accumulating hundreds of millions of dollars in debt following ambitious expansion efforts.

International travel suffered a sharp decline due to the COVID-19 pandemic, along with a significant devaluation of the Kenyan shilling and rising interest rates, making debt repayment difficult. The airline has been suffering financial losses since 2013.

Kilavuka expressed that the first half results represented a remarkable achievement and expressed “reasonable confidence” that Kenya Airways will break even throughout 2024. He noted that the airline’s revenue increased by 22% in the first half of the year, driven by a 10% increase in passenger numbers.

To avoid default on a bond due in June, the government successfully sold a new international bond earlier this year, which strengthened the Kenyan shilling. This in turn had a positive impact as it reduced foreign exchange losses.