National carrier Kenya Airways (KQ) has confirmed that several of its flights have made unsuccessful attempts to land at Mogadishu Airport in Somalia for the past week.
In a statement on Tuesday, June 4, KQ said that its flights experienced stronger-than-usual tailwinds that have made it impossible to safely land in Mogadishu.
As a safety precaution, the KQ crew opted to divert back to Nairobi, following strict safety protocols and always ensuring the comfort and safety of customers.
“Kenya Airways (KQ) confirms that since May 24, 2024, due to adverse weather activities over Somalia, a few of our flights into Mogadishu have experienced stronger-than-usual tailwinds that have made it impossible to safely land the aircraft,” read part of the statement.
The national airline noted that it could not fly the secondary approach into Mogadishu’s Aden Adde International Airport due to safety concerns since its pilots would need to overlfy the city.
KQ disclosed that the airport authorities have addressed the matter and the flights can now land safely in Mogadishu.
“Our crew did not opt to use the alternative runway approach overflying the city until the Airport authorities in Mogadishu mitigated the security and safety concerns. We can confirm that the airport authorities in Mogadishu have since addressed this, and we will be able to land the aircraft safely,” KQ added.
The carrier apologised to impacted customers saying the flight disruptions were cuased by inconvinices beyond its controll.
“We deeply understand and regret the inconvenience these circumstances beyond our control have caused our esteemed customers. We are proactively communicating with the impacted customers. We thank them for their patience and understanding and reiterate that their safety and that of our crew is our one priority,” said KQ.
This comes days after a KQ flight crash-landed at the Kisumu International Airport after suffering a bird strike.
Also Read: KQ Issues Statement After Plane Crash Landed At Kisumu Airport
