RwandAir to fly daily from Heathrow from October

Rwanda flag carrier RwandAir will operate daily direct flights from Heathrow to Kigali from the end of October.

RwandAir currently operates between Heathrow and Kigali four times a week but will upgrade the service to daily from the start of the winter schedule on October 29.

The African airline has been operating from London since May 2017 when it launched flights from Gatwick to Kigali via Brussels.

It switched to Heathrow in 2020 and began direct flights to Kigali in late 2022.

The additional flights went on sale today with return flights from London starting from £587 in economy and £2,199 in business class, including taxes and charges.

The airline’s schedule allows for connections via Kigali to other destinations in Africa, the Middle East and Asia.

RwandAir chief executive Yvonne Makolo said: “London is an incredibly important market for RwandAir so we are incredibly excited to be adding direct daily flights from our home in Kigali to Heathrow.

“Having first launched flights to the British capital in 2017, we have continued to build our presence following strong demand from customers in the UK and Africa.

“These new daily direct flights will offer customers the convenience and connectivity they have long asked for.”

The service will depart Heathrow at 08:30, arriving into Kigali at 07:00 the following morning, and the return flight depart at 23:35, arriving into Heathrow at 06:20 the next day.

RwandAir will operate an Airbus A330 on the route, offering 30 lie-flat seats in business class and up to 244 seats in economy.

The carrier launched direct services between Paris Charles de Gaulle and Kigali, operating three times a week, in late June and maintains a three-days-a-week service between Brussels and Kigali.

The Rwanda capital is due to host the World Travel & Tourism Council Summit in November.