By Luke Anami
Local and international flights suffered losses estimated in millions of shillings when the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport was closed on Wednesday.
The flights were diverted to other Airports. Also at a loss, were exports to the European market.
The airport’s closure on Wednesday, followed a flight landing mishap. Egypt Air 849 with 123 passengers on board skidded and veered off the runway landing in mud.
The mishap disrupted the exports of 700 tonnes of fresh produce which includes flowers, fruits, and vegetables.
Flight 540 which had its six flights cancelled is estimated to have cost it more than Sh 2.5 million ($30,000).
“The Airport was closed to about 10 hours disrupting six of our flights that were scheduled to depart by 6.30 when we have our first flight.
We estimate losses in terms of hiring aircrafts, taking care of our passengers, parking fee, and transfer and landing fee to be in the tune of $30,000,” Nixon Ooko, Operations Manager at Flight 540 said in an interview with The Standard.
“If you add the cost of fuel, the figure could be higher though we are still counting our losses.”
horticulture affected
Fresh Produce Association of Kenya Chief Executive Officer Dr Stephen Mbithi said the mishap delayed exports of 700 tonnes of Fresh produce which is exported to European and other markets daily.
“The mishap has affected our exports in a very big way. We are in the process of finding out how much could have been lost in terms of what was delayed,” Dr Mbithi said.
Airlines morning arrivals were diverted to Mombasa, Entebbe and Dar es Salam airports.
Observers blamed the State for its inability to respond to emergencies with speed and precision.
They called for the construction of a second runway to supplement the main.
