KQ grounds plane in Cape Town after mid-air bird strike

Kenya Airways (KQ) has grounded one of its planes following a bird strike incident in Cape Town, South Africa on Saturday.

KQ in a statement on Saturday said that although the Nairobi-Cape Town flight landed safely, the mid-air collision with a bird caused some damage to the plane.

“We confirm that earlier today, one of our aircraft operating from Nairobi (NBO) to Cape Town (CPT) experienced a bird strike incident upon arrival into Cape Town. The aircraft landed safely at Cape Town International Airport at approximately 1:55 pm (East African Time),” KQ said in a statement on Saturday night.

The airline explained that following a technical inspection after landing, the aircraft was declared Aircraft on Ground (AOG) after engineers detected significant damage to the radome, a critical protective cover on the aircraft’s nose section.

This compelled KQ to re-adjust its return flight schedules.

“Following technical assessment, the aircraft was declared Aircraft on Ground (AOG) following significant damage to the radome. This affected the service flight from Cape Town back to Nairobi,” the statement added.

The national carrier said its technical teams are currently working around the clock to carry out the necessary inspections and repairs, with the aim of returning the aircraft to service and returning it to Nairobi within the next 24 hours.

“In line with standard safety and operational procedures, the aircraft is currently undergoing the necessary inspections and maintenance. Our technical teams are working round the clock to recover the aircraft back to Nairobi within the next 24 hours,” KQ revealed.

While apologising, the airline said that it is working to minimise inconvenience to affected passengers by communicating alternative travel arrangements where necessary and providing timely updates.

“We are actively working to minimise disruption to our schedule and support affected customers through communication updates on alternative travel arrangements where applicable,” the KQ statement said.

It added, “We sincerely apologise to our guests for the inconvenience caused and appreciate your patience and understanding as we work to restore normal operations.”