A Kenya Airways flight bound for New York was forced to return to Nairobi on Sunday evening after developing a technical fault mid-air.
The airline described the turn-back as a precautionary safety measure, carried out in line with standard aviation procedures.
Flight KQ 002D departed Nairobi for New York, but at approximately 7:50 pm, while flying over Chad, the aircraft “experienced a flight controls spoiler malfunction”. This prompted the crew to immediately initiate precautionary safety checks before electing to return to Nairobi for a full technical evaluation.
The aircraft was expected to land safely at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport at 12:30 am on 6 July.
In a statement, Kenya Airways said the decision to turn back was made solely in the interest of passenger and crew safety, and that pilots are specifically trained to handle such scenarios.
“For the safety of our guests and crew onboard, the crew followed precautionary safety checks and elected to return to Nairobi for further technical evaluation,” the airline stated. It clarified that spoiler malfunctions, while rare, cause increased drag and fuel consumption, and that air turn-backs are a standard safety procedure.
The airline apologised to affected passengers and pledged to rebook them on the next available flight to New York as soon as possible.
“We sincerely apologise to our customers for the inconvenience and assure them that their safety and that of our crew are our highest priority,” the statement read.
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