Dubai extends Kenya flight ban to Friday
Health workers check passengers arriving at Dubai International Airport. Dubai on December 20, 2021 suspended for 48 hours all inbound and transit passenger flights to the Emirate of Dubai from any point in the Republic of Kenya.
The Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA) has extended the ban on all inbound and transit passenger flights from Kenya.
The 48-hour ban, which was to end today (Wednesday), will now extend to Friday December 24.
“All air transport services with inbound and transit passenger movements to the emirate of Dubai from any point in Kenya are temporarily suspended up to and including 24th December,” said Emirates Airlines to its customers today.
It affects all inbound and transit passenger flights to the Emirate of Dubai from any point in the Republic of Kenya.
However, flights from Dubai to Nairobi remain unaffected. The suspension also does not affect cargo flights.
The extension of suspension of all inbound and transit passenger flights from Kenya comes barely a day after Kenya Airways suspended passenger flights to Dubai.
The national carrier said it would refund passengers who had booked tickets for travel within the suspension period. The travellers will also be allowed to rebook when flights resume.
No particular reason was given by Dubai for the suspension which started at 10.30am Monday.
However, the move comes amid a surge in Covid-19 cases in Kenya. The country's Covid-19 positivity rate has surged in recent weeks — from 1.1 percent on December 5 to 29.6 percent yesterday — the highest level since Kenya recorded the first coronavirus case in March last year.
