Kenya Airways (KQ) has announced resumption of flights into and out of Kisumu International Airport.
The national carrier in a statement issued on Friday, May 31, 2024, said the flights were operating on schedule after the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) together with Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) carried out safety inspections and declared the runway safe.
“We want to inform our customers that our flights into and out of Kisumu International Airport are operating on schedule.
“This is after the airport authority, KAA together with KCAA carried out safety inspections and declared the runway safe for use,” KQ said in a statement.
KQ noted that its engineers are currently working with the airport authorities to recover the aircraft from the airport.
The airline also apologised to the customers that were affected by the incident where the plane was struck by a bird while trying to land.
Customer Update on KQ operations at Kisumu International Airport. pic.twitter.com/dbvPeHTNqV
— Kenya Airways (@KenyaAirways) May 31, 2024
KAA in a statement this morning confirmed that all passengers on board the Kenya Airways plane that encountered the incident on Thursday, May 30, 2024, had been safely evacuated.
The authority pointed out that the KQ plane suffered a bird strike after landing at the Kisumu International Airport forcing the plane to be stuck on the runway.
Following the incident, KAA assured the country and other stakeholders that the passengers were evacuated without any injuries after a swift response from its team at the airport.
“Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) confirms that earlier this evening, a Kenya Airways (KQ) aircraft encountered an incident after landing at Kisumu International Airport, resulting in the aircraft being immobilized at the end of the runway, on the turning loop,” part of the statement read.
KAA had indicated that it had cleared the runway which was blocked by the plane, paving the way for other aircraft to touch down at the Kisumu International Airport.
“Safe operational distances on the runway have now been declared, and a Notice To All Airmen (NoTAM) will be published by the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) to facilitate the resumption of normal operations at the airport.
“At KAA, the safety and security of all passengers and airport users remain our utmost priority. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused by this incident and express our gratitude for the patience and understanding of everyone affected,” KAA said.
