Precision Air

Nairobi to Kilimanjaro then Zanzibar to Nairobi. The outbound flight was basic but comfortable and kept to time. However roughly 50% of the luggage failed to make it with us (despite having completed transfer formalities at Nairobi in good time). It caught up with us by taxi the next day in Arusha at a cost of US$25 per bag (not per taxi!). Some people had lost small items from their luggage during the process. On the return leg our flight originally appeared to be on time but we were told it would stop by at Dar Es Salam. The time came and went with no information although a Precision flight to Dar did take off at the time our flight due. After an hour's delay we took off and flew to Dar where it became apparent (although no announcements were made) that we had to get off. We were herded into a terminal handed out blank boarding cards with a number scribbled on them and directed through security into a departure gate with no facilities. Again there was no announcement or other information but by talking to staff and looking over their shoulders at their computer terminals we discovered that there would be a further wait of several hours before we could join a scheduled flight from Dar to Nairobi. We negotiated our way back through security to find coffee toilets etc. Eventually the second plane boarded (passengers with proper boarding cards first then everyone else rushing to fill in the gaps. I assume everyone made it?) On arrival at Nairobi we found one of our bags delivered to the wrong luggage carousel but the other didn't initially appear. By chance we spotted it through a window at the bottom of a pile of luggage in a truck near one of the conveyor belts. After it became apparent that it wasn't going anywhere we were able to point it out to an official and get them to go behind the scenes to retrieve it. All in all I wasn't at all impressed by the Precision Air experience either in terms of comfort timing organisation customer service or baggage handling.

One of the worst airlines I have encountered. Arrived last Saturday on time for a 15.15h flight from Arusha to Dar es Salaam via Zanzibar. Was told that the flight to Dar es Salaam wasn´t happening due to technical difficulties. We therefore were transported with a shuttle bus to Kilimanjaro airport where a flight to DAR was going to leave at 18.00h. Shortly before we left Arusha a Precision Air flight was coming in and was soon to leave for Zanzibar ?? Our request to get a seat on that flight ( which was our original flight) was refused. Finally arrived at the Kilimanjaro airport where we were brought to a special lounge informed that there isn´t a 18.00 h flight to DAR. Supposedly a rerouted Kenyan Airways plane from Nairobi would bring us to DAR at 19.30h but as we had an onward flight at 21.20 from DAR to ZRH we were told that the connection time wouldn´t be sufficient. One of the staffers therefore called Nairobi (where our onward flight was to be refilled on the way to Europe) to request that we could board in Nairobi instead of DAR but to no avail. Finally boarded the Kenyan Airways 737 at 19.30h which was full of mosquitos never seen such a pest infested plane ever before. The captain told us that he had waited for more than an hour but was told that the stranded guests (we) wouldnt be there yet although we had waited for more than 3 hours at the airport. Finally made it to DAR and were able to reach the onward flight due to the huge goodwill of a Swissport ground staff at DAR. If you can avoid Precision Air avoid them as not every unorganized bunch of people should be allowed to start an airline.

DAR - Arusha and Kilimanjaro - ZNZ - DAR with Precision air without any problem. Seats very narrow in flight service ok flights mostly on time. Check in DAR and Kili ok but this are international airports with trained staff. Check in in ZNZ a little bit chaotic but they managed to carry our wooden Giraffe without problems to DAR. Definitely one of the better airlines in Africa.

Precision Air are anything but precise! We had two flights booked from Tabora to Dar. Confirmed at the Precision Air office in Tabora the previous day. When we arrived at the airport with lots of time to spare we and many others were told that the flight was overbooked and we could not travel. Back to the Precision Air office in Tabora to be told the flights on the following days were fully booked as were flights from nearby towns. The office claimed we had not confirmed the flight (despite us doing so in there the previous day) and refused to refund the money. In the end we got the sleeper train followed by a bus.

I flew with Precision Air this summer when I visited Tanzania - DAR-JRO return. The problems started as soon as I handed the money (£150) over. I got an email saying my return flight from JRO-DAR "no longer exists" and they had moved me to a flight from Arusha (about 40 miles away) to Dar. After 2 weeks of emailing them every day I managed to get them to put me on a morning flight from Kili as there was no way I could get to Arusha for the flight they had me on. Check-in at Dar es Salaam was very slow there's no information and you have to wait for the airline staff to hang a board above the desk with the destination on it before you know where to check in. Check-in itself took quite a while considering it was a domestic flight and I was alone. Once in the departure lounge we were told the flight would be delayed for 90 minutes; no reason given. The plane was acceptably clean nothing special though definitely no frills. We got a bag of peanuts each - that's all. Toilet was disgusting obviously hadn't been cleaned for a while. Landing at Kilimanjaro I was relieved to see my luggage had made it though many on my flight had lost bags. I volunteered in Tanzania and over the summer met a great number of people who'd flown with Precision Air and lost baggage only to get it back sometimes as long as 4 or 5 days later and find things had been taken from their luggage. One of my friends had packed a whole load of things for a school she worked in and the whole lot had been nicked. Others had lost things like shoes shampoo torches sleeping bags roll mats - things Precision Air probably know you won't make a big deal about losing. I also met two guys in Tanzania who were supposed to fly home with Precision Air/Kenya Airways from JRO-LHR via Nairobi. Two weeks before they left Precision Air phoned them to say they were now going from Arusha to Dar staying the night in Dar es Salaam then flying on to Nairobi in the morning and on to London from there. This meant they had to fork out for a 2-hour bus journey to Arusha and sleep in Dar airport (not surprisingly Precision Air/Kenya Airways did NOT give them a hotel room despite the change being entirely their fault) This added a good 24 hours onto their journey but they had no explanation compensation for their troubles or even reimbursement for their extra travel costs. My return journey was just plain frustrating; on arrival at the airport I was told the flight was 2 hours delayed (no explanation of course) Finally we were all called through to the departure lounge only to sit there for a futher 90 minutes because we had to wait for our plane to arrive from Nairobi. None of the Precision Air staff made any announcements or let us know what was going on. Being in the departure lounge also meant that they had chucked all our water bottles in the bin at security and there were no shops to buy water from in departures. The flight went to Dar via Zanzibar where we were meant to spend 10 minutes. We were there for 40 minutes at least. When we finally got to Dar I found my sleeping bag had been nicked off my backpack (it hadn't fallen off because the straps were still tight) but I just walked out of the airport vowing never to fly with Precision Air ever again! I've flown with worse African carriers but for internal Tanzanian flights I'd recommend Air Tanzania or if you have time using a decent coach company.

Flew with Precision NBO-ZNZ flight was OK. On time which was more than can be said for luggage - 50% of passengers did not get their luggage which was later delivered to your hotel at YOUR expense for a $50 taxi fare. Had to claim money back in Stonetown at the end of my holiday which the staff at Precision Air was very unwilling to do even with all the receipts etc. Beware if flying with this outfit - this problem happens a lot!

Precision is a subsidiary of Kenya Airways and operates flights out of Dar Es Salaam and Nairobi. Recently flew with them (as offered by our travel agent) connecting between Nairobi and Zanzibar. I was pleasantly surprised on both occasions having never heard of them before. Trip out of NBO left bang on time. Invited to identify our bag on the tarmac before boarding (it really is a massive weight off one's mind to see your bag being physically loaded onboard)! The crew while not the most friendly of ladies were nevertheless very efficient. Flew on an ATR-72 which was a little bit noisy and with leg-room at an abolsolute premium I wouldn't want to be stuck onboard for too long! However outbound was mid-morning and we were offered soft drinks and a very generous pack of cashews. The return was early morning so we had a really very passable continental breakfast box (croissant roll honey butter juice) and plenty of tea coffee and soft drinks. We were able to check our luggage right through to Heathrow in Zanzibar which was a real blessing. Do note though that if begining a long-haul journey out of a more rural African airport connecting in Nairobi it's almost ALWAYS necessary to collect a boarding pass at the transit desk at Jomo Kenyatta (NBO). Tip: if flying with Precision try and nab a seat as near to the rear as possible - you'll get off first and beat the masses to the desk! Would definitely travel with Precision again for the excellent time-keeping if for nothing else!