Update: CS Murkomen announced that the plane had been removed from the runway an hour later than expected and flights would resume.
Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen on Monday, April 17, explained that the cargo plane that stalled at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) could not take off because of tyre damage.
In a statement, the CS explained that 11 out of 16 tyres of the cargo plane were punctured and that the process of removing the aircraft from the runway required time.
Further, Murkomen stated that the cargo in the plane weighed 100 tonnes which had to be removed and the tyres replaced before the plane could be towed off the runway.
“A Singapore airline cargo aircraft B747-400 aborted take off due to a technical problem at JKIA. As a result, 11 out of 16 rear tyres were punctured.
“The process to remove the aircraft from the runway required the evacuation of 100 tonnes of cargo and replacement of the damaged tyre before the aircraft can be towed off the runway,” the statement read in part.
Murkomen noted that since the aircraft was at the end of the runway, there were limited take-off operations involving smaller aircraft.
“A technical team drawn from Kenya Airports Authority(KAA), Kenya Airways, Kenya Civil Aviation Authority(KCAA) and other stakeholders have been working hard to remove the aircraft to allow for the resumption of normal operations,” added the statement.
In addition, the CS announced that the process of removing the aircraft from the runway will be completed by 3:30 pm to allow for normal flight operations.
“We regret the inconvenience caused by this unfortunate incident. However, our priority remains the safety of our passengers.
“We estimate that the process of removing the aircraft from the runway will be completed by 1530hrs,” Murkomen assured.
Earlier in the day, a plane heading to Nairobi from New York was diverted to Entebbe Airport, Uganda amid the temporary runway closure at JKIA.
Another plane en route to JKIA from Mumbai, India also experienced delays due to the closure and passengers were advised to contact their respective airlines to get an update on the status of their flights.
The Singapore airline cargo plane developed technical problems at 8:10 AM affecting all operations.
As a result, all incoming and outgoing flights were temporarily suspended.
