Dubai has suspended all commercial flights from Kenya for 48 hours as of this Monday, as per a directive from its Civil Aviation Authority, in what is seen as a measure taken due to the rapid spread of the new COVID-19 Variant across the African continent.
“All air transport services with inbound and transit passenger movements to the Emirate of Dubai from any point in the Republic of Kenya are temporarily suspended for 48 hours effective from 20 December 2021 at 10.30hrs local time Dubai,” reads an announcement on Emirates airline’s website.
“Customers will not be accepted for travel on Emirates flights at Nairobi during this time.”
Outbound passenger flights from Dubai to Nairobi remain unaffected.
Travellers do not need to call immediately to rebook, said the announcement. “Customers can simply hold on to their Emirates ticket and when flights resume, get in touch with their travel agent or booking office to make new travel plans.”
A specific reason for this suspension was not given by Dubai authorities, which has also cancelled flights from numerous African countries due to the new variant of COVID-19.
On December 17, the UAE suspended entry of passengers from the Republic of Congo and tightened restrictions on flights from a number of other African nations, as per a directive from the National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority and the General Civil Aviation Authority.
On December 12, Emirates suspended all flights between Nigeria and Dubai in response to a recent directive by Nigerian authorities limiting flights to only one a week.
Last week, Kenya confirmed the country’s first cases of Omicron, with Kenya’s Health Ministry on Saturday announcing Covid-19 cases had risen above 2,000.
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