Kenya airways reportedly lost billions of shillings from the KENYA AVIATION Workers Union strike which resulted in the disruption of operations yesterday within the continent. In Africa the airline cancelled its Entebbe, Blantyre, Kigali and Dar es Salaam morning flights, which also saw its operations to Lagos, Accra, Abidjan and Dakar affected.
It also saw its inbound flights from Mumbai and Dubai delayed by more than three hours. Passengers booked to fly out on these routes were affected.
However Kenya airways international route to London was key to be salvaged mostly because of the stringent European Union Aviation regulations that would require the airline to compensate up to $600 (Sh60,000) per passenger if they were to cancel the service routes for a period of more than 12 hours.
Kenya’s main aerodrome, Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), handles an average of 13,000 passengers daily, with more than 8,000 of these passengers departing.
The country’s main aviation hub also handles an average of 230 flights daily, with close to 114 of them departing either for domestic, regional or international destinations.
“The financial impact created by this illegal action is substantial. We are calculating and will advise together with the airlines on the exact cost.
“Cancelled and rescheduled flights come with costs including refunds and hosting passengers, not just here but in other airports whose flights were to terminate in Nairobi. This will cause untold financial burden to airlines,” Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia told the Daily Nation.
I am pleased to announce that the issues that we had at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport that resulted in the disruption of operations this morning have been resolved and we expect that the first flight to take off in the next hour or so. #JKIA— CS James Macharia, EGH (@JamesMacharia_) March 6, 2019
KQ Managing Director Sebastian Mikosz said they were yet to fully calculate the financial costs to the airline, but in court papers filed yesterday morning, the airline put the loss at Sh300 million.
“The strike affected our morning operations, but we now expect things to slowly go back to normal as we strive to clear the backlog starting with the London and Dubai routes,” Mr Mikosz said.
Airport personnel were protesting the proposed merger between the national carrier and the airports regulator, which, if approved, will see KQ run the facility in a concession agreement with the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA).