Kenya Airways (KQ) will launch direct flights to Guangzhou, China beginning October 28th 2008.

The airline's Communication Manager, Ms Victoria Kaigai at the same time said the airline has unveiled a new winter timetable with increased flights to Bangkok and Hong Kong.

The 12-hour flights to Guangzhou will operate on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays on the airline's Boeing 777 aircraft.

KQ has been flying to Guangzhou through Dubai since 2005.

"KQ therefore becomes the first airline from sub-Sahara Africa to launch the non-stop flights from Nairobi to mainland China," said Kaigai.

The direct flight to Guangzhou becomes the third outside Africa. In Europe, the airline flies directly between Nairobi and London, and Nairobi to France.

Guangzhou is a major shopping destination for merchants from Africa, who connect through Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).

Apart from reducing their travel time by an estimated 20 per cent, travellers on the flights will also eliminate a 2-hour stop-over at Dubai.

Kaigai said frequencies to Bangkok will now go up from 6 to 7 times in a week while those to Hong Kong will move from 4 to 5 times a week.