April 18, 2023, 12:35 PM
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The only runway at Kenya's Jomo Kenyatta International airport (JKIA) in Nairobi was left unusable for more than eight hours due to a failed take-off by a Singapore Airlines (SIA) cargo plane.
The plane, a Boeing 747-400 freighter scheduled to operate as SQ7343, was bound for Amsterdam from Nairobi.
The plane had experienced technical issues with one of its engines just as it was about to take off at about 8:10am in Kenya (1:10am Singapore time) on Monday, Apr. 17, an SIA spokesperson said.
UPDATE: The JKIA runway is now opened, & operations at the airport have resumed. Disabled aircraft has been cleared from the runway. 1/2
— Kenya Airports Authority (@KenyaAirports) April 17, 2023
The aircraft's crew safely stopped the aircraft before take-off.
However, the aborted take-off caused 11 out of 16 of its rear tires to puncture, the Kenya Airports Authority said in a statement.
PRESS STATEMENT: Resumption of Flight Operations at JKIA following Successful Removal of Stalled Aircraft. pic.twitter.com/BdltA7Eixx
— Kenya Airports Authority (@KenyaAirports) April 17, 2023
About 100 tonnes of cargo had to be removed from the plane and its damaged tires had to be replaced before the aircraft could be towed to safety.
A technical team from Kenya Airports Authority (KAA), Kenya Airways (KQ), Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA), and other stakeholders worked together to safely remove the aircraft from the runway.
An SIA spokesperson said the crew disembarked the aircraft normally.
Kenya’s Cabinet secretary for roads and transport Kipchumba Murkomen later said in a Twitter post that the aircraft was removed from the runway at about 8:40pm Singapore time.
Information on flight tracking website Flightradar24 indicated that the aircraft started to taxi onto the runway, and reached a maximum ground speed of 151 knots (280kmh) before slowing to a stop.
Current status at JKIA runway. pic.twitter.com/ENc7NuxoIS
— Davis Sango🇰🇪 (@DavisSango) April 17, 2023
Investigations are ongoing into the incident.
"Singapore Airlines apologises for any inconvenience caused by the incident."
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