In a hurry? Here’s a quick summary…
- A Kenya Airways Boeing 737 Freighter experienced a blown-out tire, leading to an emergency landing at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) and the temporary closure of the runway for over an hour.
- The Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) and Kenya Airways worked together to safely tow the aircraft from the runway, resuming normal airport operations shortly after.
Kenya Airways has provided further details about the aircraft incident that led to the closure of the runway at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) for over an hour on Tuesday.
In an official statement, Kenya Airways, also known as KQ, confirmed that they received reports from Sharjah Airport authorities regarding a blown-out tire on one of its aircraft, a Boeing 737 Freighter.
The control team operations subsequently informed the pilots to divert the aircraft, which was originally scheduled to land in Juba, to Nairobi.
Upon arriving in Nairobi at 12:55 PM, the pilots performed an overflight to allow the operations team to assess whether the plane had enough functional wheels to land safely.
The operations team confirmed that the aircraft had sufficient wheels for a safe landing, with only one of the six wheels damaged.
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However, during the landing at JKIA, one of the other tires failed, rendering the aircraft immobile on the runway.
In response to the incident, the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) issued a statement announcing the temporary closure of the runway.
Normal operations at the airport resumed an hour later after the aircraft was successfully towed from the runway.
Kenya Airways, in close collaboration with the airport authority and regulator KCAA, worked diligently to replace the tires and tow the aircraft to safety. The plane was successfully moved off the runway at 2:12 PM.
Kenya Airways apologized for any inconvenience caused by the incident and reiterated that the safety of their crew and customers remains their top priority.