Operations at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), Kenya’s busiest airport, were temporarily halted due to a disruption in the supply of Jet A-1 fuel.
The incident caused significant delays, leaving passengers stranded and airlines unable to operate as scheduled.
Kenya Airways (KQ) and Jambojet both issued statements blaming the problem on the fuel supply at JKIA which caused all their flights to be delayed.
In a statement, KQ said that the delay was caused by maintenance of the fuel hydrants that extended beyond the planned duration at JKIA.
“Due to maintenance of the fuel hydrants that extended beyond the planned duration at JKIA, we have experienced delays in our morning flight departures,” the national carrier said.
Jambojet on the other hand said that they were forced to cancel several flights to Mombasa from JKIA following the fuel hitch.
The airline assured its customers that it’s working towards recovering the departure and arrival schedule by midday.
The Flight delays witnessed on Thursday morning caused disruptions and inconveniences to the majority of travelers at JKIA who had to wait for some time in order to board.
“Our dedicated teams are working tirelessly to recover our departure and arrival schedule by midday today, and we appreciate your understanding and patience during this time,” it said.
“We sincerely apologise to our customers for any inconvenience and assure you that we are doing our best to minimise the disruption. Our commitment to providing excellent service remains unwavering,” it said.
The Kenya Airports Authority (KAA), which manages the airport, issued a statement confirming that the disruption had been resolved and that normal operations had resumed.
“KAA wishes to inform the public that there was an A1 fuel supply disruption this morning that affected operations at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA). The issue has been rectified, and normal airport operations have now resumed,” KAA said.
The Authority apologized for the inconveniences caused by the disruption and directed passengers to check their airlines for information about their flights.
During recent demonstrations against the government’s deal with Adani Company over JKIA takeover, the Airline revealed that it lost at least Sh80 Million.
The airline’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO)Allan Kilavuka on Monday revealed that the flight disruptions witnessed during the strike led to the airline suffering huge losses as it was forced to pay compensation as well as handling travelers flights rebooking over the delays witnessed.
