NAIRO BI, Kenya, Apr 5 – National carrier Kenya Airways has announced the suspension of passenger flights between Kenya and the United Kingdom.
A statement from the airline on Monday indicated the suspension will take effect from the midnight of Friday, April 9, 2021 until further notice.
“Customers impacted by this directive may change their bookings for later travel or request a refund with all penalties waived. All tickets must be utilized before 31st March 2022,” read the statement.
KQ has however added two new flights to cater for increased demand for travel to the UK before the advisory takes effect.
The new flights will operate on Wednesday, April 7, 2021 and Thursday, April 8, 2021.
The statement explained that the suspension was due to the directive issued by the Government of Kenya suspending all flights from the UK, effective midnight 9th April 2021.
Kenya’s directive was in response to a red alert advisory issued by the United Kingdom.
A statement from Kenya’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Saturday evening stated: All passengers originating from or transiting through UK airports will now be required to go through mandatory 14-day isolation at a government designated facility at their own cost upon entry into Kenya.
While in isolation, they will be subject to take two PCR COVID-19 tests, on day 2 and day 8 of their quarantine.
The UK, which has red-listed 39 countries, said new data showed increased risks of importing coronavirus “variants of concern”