This is a brief overview of what Kenyan bloggers are saying about the tragic accident involving a Kenya Airways plane, which has crashed in Southern Cameroon. The plane, Boeing 737-800, was enroute from Abidjan, Ivory Coast to Nairobi, Kenya with 114 passengers on board.
Kenya Airways is the fifth largest airline in Africa and has more transcontinental flights than any other African airline. The last time a Kenyan plane crashed was in 2000 in West Africa.
Kumekucha starts with a bit of history for context:
There is something about Abidjan airport in Ivory Coast) and Kenya Airways. In the entire history of this very popular African airline (since inception in 1977 from the ashes of the East African Community owned East African Airways) that is today probably the busiest over African skies, it has had only two crashes. Both have been in the last 7 years and both have closely involved the Abidjan airport.
Al Kags reports from Nairobi:
Kenya Airways Managing Director, Titus Naikuni and Government Spokesman Alfred Mutua have just concluded a press conference where they gave the latest information regarding the missing Kenya Airways flight KQ 507 in Cameroon.
In the statement they said that they have been able to so far identify 3 of the 6 people whose nationalities were unidentified. They found that two of the people were from Equatorial Guinea and one from Mauritius. The reason some of the nationalities were unknown is that even though Kenya Airways has a flight manifest, the details of Nationality normally are with Cameroon immigration, from whom they are getting the information, albeit slowly.Mr. Naikuni brought to the conference his head of engineering, who described the flight path that the plane was to have taken from Abidjan over Douala onwards. He showed that the area where a distress signal was received from the missing flight was and that is in a dense equatorial forest south of the flight path closer to Yaounde.
I think, therefore I blog reacts to the shocking news in Nairobi:
Families of the 9 crew members are gathered at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and at the passenger crisis centre that has been set up at the Intercontinental Hotel in Nairobi. The general mood in Nairobi is apprehensive as memories of the catastrophic KQ crash at Abidjan in 2000 come alive and concern for the missing plane increases by the hour.
The accident has prompted discussions about the quality of aircrafts and the safety of Africa's skies. The Diary of One Black Man wonders why Africa is prone to air accidents:
This rekindles the age old debate ..How safe is it to fly in Africa?
Why is Africa prone to air accidents? I could go on and give you a laundry list of all the reasons. Here is a continent that is struggling with financial problems. These countries get these airplanes through the “throw-them-a-bone” programme by the west which happens every once a decade so that the west can be seen as doing something. The fact that these countries do not have the parts, manpower or technology to maintain these planes is almost irrelevant. The same reasons as to why road carnage is so high in Africa will apply here!
Commenting on this post, Mental Acrobatics notes that the plane that crashed was only six months old and not a “throw-them-a-bone” aircraft:
The plane that went down was collected from Boeing in October 2006 and
went into use at Kenya Airways in November 2006. That is is just six
months ago. This was not some ramshackle “th[r]ow them a bone” aircraft.
Kenya Entrepreneur is not sure about flying Kenya Airways, which used to be his first choice of African airlines:
I had already boiled down the African airlines that I would fly to two: Kenya airways was one and South African airlines was the second. Now, I don’t know if I’d want to fly Kenya Airways again. I’m sorry…..this is the second fatal accident in less than ten years and it is going to be a huge public relations dilemma for Kenya airways, which is operating under the cloud that African airlines have one of the worst safety records in the world.
And don’t tell me accidents can happen to anyone. Kenya airways does not fly that many flights compared to the larger international carriers like British airways or Lufthansa.
Nigerian Airlines is out of the question:
So, let’s say I want to fly from Nairobi to Abuja and I want to get to my destination alive. What choices do I have? If I’m suicidal, I’ll obviously fly Nigerian airlines, but if I’m not, what do I do? do I have to fly British airways and go through London, then turn around and come back to Africa? & why have both accidents occurred in West Africa?
Kenyan Analyst is not shaken. He writes:
That said, I will still fly KQ anytime, anywhere.
Mental Acrobatics fears that hysteria might take over the debate about the safety of Africa's skies. He writes a brilliant post arguing that Africa's skies is not the worst in the world:
After the tragedy this morning with the loss of Kenya Airways flight KQ507 with 114 people on board I am more or less sure that a big debate will sprout up on how safe Africa’s skies are and on how safe African airlines are. This post aims to put some facts on the ground before hysteria takes over the debate.
The plane involved in the incident today was a brand new Boeing 737-800. The plane was collected from Boeing in October 2006 and went into service in November 2006. No ramshackle plane this. These Next-Generation 737 are the newest and most technologically advanced single-aisle airplane in the business today. It flies higher, faster and farther than previous models and competitors. In addition, its flight deck features the latest liquid-crystal flat-panel displays and is designed to accommodate new communications and flight-management capabilities.
It appears that “lumping all countries into one category” is part of the “problem” with Africa's skies:
Last year the IATA Director General Giovanni Bisignani said, “Africa is our biggest concern. While the continent represents just 4 percent of total air traffic worldwide, it accounts for 25 percent of the accidents.” All this following a decision by the European Commission in March 2006 to publish a “blacklist” of 92 airlines, dominated by African airlines, that it banned from European skies because of poor safety records. The “blacklist” includes 50 airlines registered in the Democratic Republic of Congo, 13 from Sierra Leone, 11 from Equatorial Guinea, 6 from Swaziland and 3 from Liberia. (Yes that was FIFTY from the DRC!)…Africa is a big place. You lump all the countries into one category you are going to have problems no matter what you are talking about.
Bankelele dismisses the whole question of plane crashes in Africa…”they happen all around the world“:
The question of air crashes in Africa should not arise - they happen all around the world. Yes, there are bad airlines, but it is not an African thing. Poorly run airlines do not last for very long as passengers avoid them (unless they have no alternative) and authorities (should) step in and shut them down. The (unfortunate) passenger list produced by KQ is an endorsement of the high regard that other nations have for the airline.
This is a tragic time, as are all plane crashes when they happen. This time, it has happened to Kenya Airways (KQ), an airline with an exemplary safety level.
I flew on KQ this week and will gladly fly with them tomorrow or any other day.
Finally, Kenya Bytes remembers the families, friends, and relatives of the passengers:
I would wish to extend my condolences to the families, friends and relatives of those who perished when KQ Flight 507, bound for Nairobi with 115 people aboard, crashed shortly after it took off from Douala in Cameroon on Saturday morning. To all concerned I say pole sana.
the problem with those poorly educated fellas with fake accents who left kenya during moi regime, they are not aware that things have changed and things are better now. can u please wake up and smelll the coffee. we are on top of our game while u guys break ur backs with 10 dollar jobs and always on the run cos u got no papers. Can u pls come home and get real.
I`d like to express my deep and sincere condolences to families of victims.
While it is true that some airlines are just joking with security matters we should not put all African Airlines in the same basket. Why is it a reflex talk about security when it happens in Africa and not when it happens in Europe or America ?
KQ seems to be a responsible airline and indeed the B737-800 is a new aircraft with up to date technologies. Other such responsible African airlines like South African or Air Mauritius which recently received the IOSA certification exist.
Please do not draw any conclusion before any enquiry is completed.
Why have both kenya airways planes crashed in West Africa….It’s not a question of whether African skies are safe…its about which African skies are not safe. I will admitt that they are not the best airlines..but some of them including kenya airways are some of the best.
What has happened to the KQ aircraft is very tragic.
I know it is the best airline in Africa and this accident should not make us forget this.
Let us not speculate but wait to hear the real cause of the accident.
It is a fact that aircrashes can happen to any airline in the world so this is not a matter of how unsafe it is to fly in africa.
How many crashes have we heard of in the recent past in Asia,America or Europe itself?
Lastly,i console all the friends and relatives of the passengers aboard KQ 507 during this difficult time.
I dont think that Africn skies are less safer than lets say, Eastern Europe or even Russia. Rather, what i think is the safety of specific country airspaces. We cant ignore the fact that West and Central Africa skies ae some of most unsafe. About the safety record of KQ, there is absolutely no doubt that they are up there with the best. Comparing KQ with British Airways or Lufthansa who fly international flights and never come close to the incompetence that is galore at some ramshakle ‘international’ airports in Africa, is totally unfair. The passenger manifest is also a badge of honour that KQ is truly the best in Africa. In anycase, their interconnection of African cities via Nairobi hub to the world is unmatched.
My sincere condolences to the airline and the family and friends of the victims. And recall, the assistance that KQ offered after 2000 crash has been unmatched since.
[...] Saturday, May 5th, 2007 at 10:44 AM Update 1: Almost all the visits to this post are coming from people Googling “KQ507”. Please read my follow up post on Kenya Airways and safety in the African sky. You may also want to read a round up of what Kenyan bloggers have been saying about this tragedy and keep an eye on the KenyaUnlimited aggregator for the latest thoughts from Kenyan bloggers. [...]
At this time of sorrow, could I urge journalists to be more sensitive and not rush to publish information which has not been verified? A case in point is the publication of the name of the wrong Flight Engineer of Flight KQ 507. I can’t begin to imagine the trauma that that false information caused to the relatives and friends of the engineer, who fortunately is alive and well and on official duty in Dakar, Senegal.
How can it take all this time for people to know about the truth of this plane crash in Cameroon? This is certainly cause for alarm. Something needs to be done about this horrific tragedy happening on the African continent. No body is safe now. Looks like there is a tendency to care less about human life. Don’t tell me it happens everywhere like that. We better be serious about what really matters when it comes to saving life. I thank and encourage those who are doing their best to show their concern in this matter.
Air Mauritius did not get any air crashes for the past 20 years.
http://www.askthepilot.com/airlinesafety.html
How can I find out the names of the passengers, I think my pastor may be the one American listed on board! Help please.
People may be quick to blame the African skies, but the cause of the accident is not yet known what if it is a design defect on the plane, these are marvelous machines and very fragile so Boeng may also be answerable.if we are to look into safty records some african airlines have better records than the european ones and if we are to rank them airline by air line you will be suprised to see the top positions taken by African airlines. The problem with western coutries when it comes to femine, war, zero safty, hiv, or anything nagative they take the African continent as one contry instead of taking case by case and country by country
I think its sad that some people who have very little info about aviation and how planes run are the one speculating about the crash. If you want to know how other airlines in Africa have faired visit http://www.aviation-safety.net its a site run by the authorititive aviation safety network and you will see airlines like Egypt air SAA have a bad record and cant be compared to KQ .KQ is the safest airline to fly with the whole of Africa and was the first one to attain the IOSA IATA OPERATIONAL SAFETY AUDIT.eGYPYT and SAA failed Et is yet to apply.
KQ operates the youngest fleet in Africa including the Boeing 777 which no other aircraft has apart from Egypt air which has one. I have worked for KQ and i have flown the Doula Abidjan and from Uganda,
Central African Republic and then Cameroon , Congo,
the weateher is terrible and there is turbulence,heavy tropical rainfall accompanied by thunder and lightening. Even ICAO INTERNATIONAL CIVIL AVIATION AUTHORITY is
aware of the hazard in that route.But as of now we have to wait for the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder to unfold the cause of the crash.
God bless Kenya Airways, God bless Kenya. Let us not forget the good that the airline had done for so long.
let us be objetive and face the facts; air crashes occur all the time. The last five of ten air crashes in the world have involved Boengs 737s including the two that went down in the Indonesia archipelago recently. It shocks me when ‘educated’ people become prejucidicial the moment the word Africa is mentioned. We have to draw a line between airlines and skies; Kenya airways is a world class airline twith an impressive safety record that competes PROFITABLY with major world carriers. It is the airline that has taken the major risk of opening the African skies through an efficient route network covering areas where even armed ‘peacekeepers’ avoid and has proofed thatafrican can afford and equally enjoy air travel- air travel is not a preserve of some’developed’ club of nations.The aircraft was a modern brand new jet by aircraft standards - 6 months old; not some old 1960 bucket playing odds to hop a 100 mile stretch. The debate should first centre on the investigation; was it human error or faulty equipment. Boeng and the US NTSB should tell us which. Secondly, the debate should centre on whether African skies (country specific no collective) are safe and if they have the neccessary support mechanisms for an increasing air traffic (competence of controllers, accuracy and reliability of critical data such as weather e.t.c) I am a proud African and an extremely proud Kenyan. I can smell a conspiracy by competition to use an unfortunate accident to ground an otherwise succesful african showcase airline. Several American and European airlines have gone backruptfor mismangement. Can we not appreciate our own? i agree there are some in diaspora who left Africa so long ago they have never come back they still thick people use handcarts to go to work.
Whoever wanted to have the list of passengers its available currently by typing http://www.kenya-airways.com
The planes may be new, the skies safe but with the wrong people on the job..we are likely to hear things like pilot error causing accidents.
However i think Kenya airways is a safe airline,but Boeing may be producing unsafe aircraft, 5 737s have crashed in the recent past going less than 15 years out of the 1000 sold during the period.This is a saddening percentage considering that these are human lives involved.
good afternoon,
i totally agree with the friends even if am italian am in kenya almost 6 times per year and ofently i take KQ via amsterdam or for the internal flights what hurt me is really the total no professional behaviour of the Cameroon Civil Aviation (that have a big resonsabilities in this event)and KQ managements..I explain you why: if really the weather conditions were so bad with a big risk of wing share NOBODY in the world give OK to take off is too dangerous and you know with the nature no jokes…and the big responsibility of the RESCUE if is probithed conditions to fly for them WHY THEY GIVE THE OK TO TAKE OFF TO KQ?…i really cant accept some offence that in africa skies r not safe are not safe coz the people is not trained correctly…KQ management coz sincerely from the largest african flight company i will expect a differ
ent treatment…almost for the respect of the victim’s families and i want to go ahead and have clarifications am disposed to legal prosecuted the CCAA and KQ managemen
hoing to have a response seriously soon
best regards and good job
giorgio bellini
Venice Italy
CEO of EXPRESSWAY Car Rental LTD
I have flown with KQ and I will do so again. An accident can happen to anyone, anywhere. It is not a accident particular to Africa. Condolences to all the victims of this tragedy.
There are just as many crashes happening elsewhere in the world than in Africa. I have travelled on KQ and will do so again in a heartbeat.
I have lost a friend in this tragedy, and my condolences to her family, colleagues and the rest of the victims’ families and friends.
I am also looking for a manifest of names. My friend went to Africa for the first time in his life hunting with his brother and a friend and I don’t know if he was on this flight or not. They are 3 Americans. Any information would be greatly appreciated.
Pam,
These telephone numbers might be of help:
Crisis telephone numbers
Kenya: +254 20 3200535/4, +254 20 3274349
South Africa: +27 11 2071100
ndesanjo thank you very much, this is greatly appreciated!
its amazing,how everytime something negative happen we want to put the blame on somebody and condem them. The Bible is very clear in such matters, it says there is a reason for everything that happens under the sun.I believe the best thing we can do is to learn something out of this tragedy and ask God to heal us.
may the Lord help all the bereaving families.
pastor peter mulenga zambia
[...] African bloggers were out in front of the story, responding to the news with challenges to the view that all African carriers are unsafe and defending the safety record of Kenya Airways. Mental Acrobatics, in particular, was all over the story, pointing out that Kenya Airways is one of four African carriers registered with the IOSA (the IATA Operational Safety Audit), the gold standard for carrier safety, that the plane involved was a brand new Boeing 737-800, and that African airlines have a significantly better safety record than airlines in the former Soviet Union. While Reuters assertion about continent-wide records is correct, the IATA statistics cited by Mental suggest that airlines in the former Soviet Union are twice as dangerous as African carriers. [...]
If anyone is intouch with the higher ups in KQ i want to suggest that they impress on the cameroon governtment and the cameroon aviation authority to get a RADAR system FOR PLANES. even next door Chad has a radar system where planes can easily be located ande detected. if we had located this plane even 24hrs after, there may have been some survivors. please please please, good has to come out of this tragedy. my condolences to the bereaved families. let us all pray for them that they will find healing. God bless Africa.
Any news on the possible cause of the crash yet?
The media mention a “distress” signal, but don’t say what it sai - problem with the plane, the weather?
Interpretation of crash depends on region. If the plane had gone down in Iraq or Israel, everybody could have said ‘terrorism’ at the bat of an eyelid. If in the U.S.A., fingers could be wagging at Boeing or the pilot. But since its Africa,everybody goes ‘i saw it coming, that no safe place for fly fly aircraft business, ogah!’. The West African route is dangerous partly due to the notoriety of its bad weather that is known by all airlines worthy the name; heavy rain, thunderstorms and hail. The KQ flight was delayed for over an hour due to bad weather. Duala airport does not have weather radar and the pilot (we can safely assume unless proofed otherwise)must then have used the onboard wx radar on the Boeng 737 to judge whether it was safe to take off. This is refered to as Pilot’s dicretion and the controller has no power to retain the aircraft on the ground - in any case Duala controllers did not have weather radar, they only relied on eyesight. there is a possibility the two engines failed due to bad weather and the airliner crashed trying to glide back to the airport using the safe flight route as per standard procedur (but then Boeng asserts the engines are designed to suck in huge amounts of rain, hail or snow before smoking out). There is possibility the aircraft was blown out of the skies (some small eplosive device in the luggage compartment maybe?). There is a possibility of someone invading the pilots cabin and ditching the plane in the ensuing confrontation. There is a possibilty of sabotage when the plane was on the ground-competition is stiff and KQ is doing wee!!There is a possibility of human error on the part of the pilot-panicking, disorientation which may have worsened a simple problem. there is a possibility of system failure -faulty fuel systems on the aircraft, instrument failure e.t.c. Remember, KQ has the youngest fleet in Africa and world, it has a Gold Standard Safety Certification by IATA meaning its maintenance and quality control systems are some of the best in the world. Be objective. howver, my caution to KQ that before it does Afriacn countries a favour of flying their citizens (Cameroon included, it should access the competence of their civil aviation authorities and demand basic infrastructure such as weather radars before flying in. One life lost is one too many and unless both the Abdjan and Cameroon investigation reports ae released to the public, coverup suspicions will come up and erode the airlines competition -to the glee of competition. KQ management - we are watching, and counting the years before the next tragedy, it is your responsibility to ensure that what happened in Abidjan and Duala never, ever happens again iregardless what investigations reveal. Condolences to all those who lost loved ones in the tragedy -no compesation will replace the loved ones. our hearts bleed for you.
Kenya airways is superb i am always flying to and from Netherlands every three months since my children leave in Kenya and i have to be in business three months in Europe.
You cannot blame KQ or underrate their safety measures for this accident.About Africa sky being safe is quite irrelevant now because there is no sky that is safe so let people not africanise this issue.There is no inferiority about the make or the pilots since they fly allover everyday.
I wish all the breaved families God’s comfort as they go through this unexpected happening that has wrecked their lives in many ways.
its with deep sorrow that we watch the events unfold at the crash site, Christ have mercy on us all, to all the victims/affected (families/friends) take heart our heavenly father is in control now and for ever more. this time it was them tomorrow it will be us, its all GOD and may he give you the serenity to accept whole outcome. GOD bless u all.
SOMETIMES I WONDER WHY THERE HAVE TO BE BLAMES AFTER AN EVENT OCCURS.TIMELY INFORMATION IS WHAT IS NEEDED WHICH UNFORTUNATELY IS NOT EASY TO COME BY. WHAT HUMANITY HAS FAILED TO REALISE IS THE NEED FOR TIMELY INFORMATION ABOUT THE OCCURRENCE AND NON-OCCURRENCE OF EVENTS SO THAT A PREVENTION MECHANISM IS TAKEN AND NOT A COREECTION MECHANISM.
LET US ALL SIT DOWN AND EXAMINE OUR CONCIENCE AND TRY TO FIGURE OUT SOMETHING THAT WILL SAVE HUMANITY FROM FATAL DISASTERS LIKE THIS.
SOMETIMES I WONDER WHY THERE HAVE TO BE BLAMES AFTER AN EVENT OCCURS. TIMELY INFORMATION IS WHAT IS NEEDED WHICH UNFORTUNAYELY IS NOT EASY (OR BEING SELFISH WITH) TO RELEASE. WHAT HUMANITY HAS FAILED TO REALISE IS THE NEED FOR TIMELY INFORMATION ABOUT THE OCCURRENCE AND NON-OCCURRENCE OF EVENTS SO THAT A PREVENTION MECHANISM IS TAKEN AND NOT A CORRECTIION MECHANISM. LET US ALL SIT DOWN AND EXAMINE OUR CONCIENCE AND TRY TO FIGURE OUT SOMETHING THAT WILL SAVE HUMANITY FROM FATAL DISASTERS LIKE THIS.
The airlines that operate in Africa face some of the most challenging conditions in the world - bad ATC, at times bad runway conditions, really severe weather, etc. etc. This is one of the reasons some of the other airlines in the world have fewer accidents. The KQ crew are well-trained professionals who are good at their jobs. I have flown with them many times and was always impressed. I have travelled all over the world, so this says a lot. I would much rather fly with them in Africa than with European or other airlines because they are more familiar with the conditions here. If anyone knows how to fly in these conditions in Africa, it is SAA and Kenya Airways. Flying is a risk and unfortunately things go wrong sometimes, but a lot more people are lost during road accidents and flying still is the safest way to travel. And I would get on a KQ flight any time. My condolences go out to all the families and friends who lost people close to them. May God be with you during this difficult time.
[...] Habari ya kuanguka kwa ndege ya Kenya, KQ507, imeleta majonzi kwa watu wengi. Wanablogu wa Kenya wamekuwa wakijadili kwa kina ajali hii. Majuzi niliandika kuhusu blogu za Kenya zilizokuwa zikijadili hii ajali. Bonyeza hapa usome habari hiyo (*habari hii iliandikwa kwa ajili ya Global Voices Online). [...]
Everything has been said BUT there must something wrong with the west Africa Aviation system.KQ if possible cancel your flights to West Africa until you are sure of the risks overthese.To those who lost their belove ones my sincere condolences.To kenyans:”Poleni sana”.
My deepest condolences to families and friends who lost their loved ones in the tragic KQ accident. May God console you in this difficult time as WE both mourn the untimely departure of the passengers onboard the Nairobi bound Boeing 737-800 that crashed shortly after taking off Douala Airport.
I don’t know how credible Murphy’s Law is. However, bad things do happen and sometimes at the worst possible time. And until when the investigation into the exact cause of this accident concludes, no stone can be left unturned, not yet, not so fast.
The fact that several tragic air crashes have happened mostly in the Western Africa air space mandates a closer look. Latest information indicate that the Nairobi bound KQ plane had flown a mere 18 seconds or so before losing contact with the Control at Douala. The plane had barely covered 5 kilometres, before it plunged into the mangrove swamps, BUT take a look where they had been searching for 2.5 days!
While we accept the inevitability of accidents, there is a lot that can be done to intervene before a bad situation turns worse, and probably prevent the point of inevitability altogether!
I will forgive my poor Tanzania for buying the expensive radar system IF IT HELPED or TRIED to SAVE a SINGLE LIFE!
Check my point: Who knows a LIFE could have been SAVED in those dreadful 36 hours. 36 hours searching the wrong spot! Whatever the outcome of this investigation, and considering the cost involved (114 precious lives, not mentioning the aircraft), whoever responsible in those air spaces owes us a BADLY NEEDED RADAR SYSTEM and whatever-that-is for a reliable weather prediction, coupled with sound judgement.
My dear brothers and sisters in Kenya, We are in This Together. My Deepest Condolences once again.
I am not skilled to understand this misery. Accept my condolence.
Yes they say we need not pass blame but I think the Cameroonians have a lot to answer for. They have treated their Kenyan counterparts with alot of disrespect.
Its like they are upto some cover up.Can they at least say how long the aircraft was up there before it came crashing down? If the aircraft crashed only five kilometres from the airport why did they go goose chasing for two days in the wilderness?
My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved.
This is sad news not only to Kenyans in particular but to all African countries in genaral. My condolence should go to the bereaved families.
I wish to send my heartfelt condolences to the families of the Kenya airways crash victims. I personally fail to understand some of the emerging facts that the crush was just but 5.42km from tha runway.May be a more layman’s or should i say more technical explanations are needed to demistify the fact that the plane was within a walking distance from the runway.Are there any security measures within the proximity of the airport? Poleni sana wenzangu. Bwana Henry Otieno as a friend I am with you in this time of grieve.
We are all very saddened by the crash, and I would like to sendmy deepest condolence to the bereaved families.
I will like to say that Kenya Airways isa good and proffessional airline. I will like to agree with Alex that KQ should suspendall the flights to West Africa. A question lingering in my mind is there a bussiness rivalry possibilities??? I think all the stone should be turned to find the answers as I will certainly continue to fly Kenya Airways to whichever destination.
[...] Ethiopian bloggers have flooded the Internet with tributes to Associated Press reporter Anthony Mitchell who was one of 114 people killed when Kenyan Airways flight KQ507 crashed in southern Cameroon early Saturday May 5. (See the BBC story on the crash and Global Voices’s roundup of the reaction of Kenyan bloggers to the accident.) [...]
I am very sad. I loss a dear friend. I pray that the loss of his life and lives of those other souls will not be in vain. Whatever needs to happen to make air travel safer in Africa must be done.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
First of all, my condolences to the families of the berieved and my prayers are with you at this time. A lot has been said and speculation is rife as to what could have happened. The media especially in Kenya have not helped matters. At a time when everyone was praying that the plane be found with survivors, the media had already condemned the flight (KQ PLANE CRASH was all over TV from as early as 10 am on Saturday 5th May on NTV and KTN). This disgusted me to say the least. CNN for the better part of the day continued to refer to it as a missing flight until it was finally found and declared to have crashed. For me the media scene has left and continues to leave a bad taste in my mouth. I think there is a moral question here that only those media houses can address. I ask the editors and journalists to imagine they had a close family member on board and then ask the question if they would have reported it the same way.
Regardless of the outcome of the investigation, Kenya Airways is one of those airlines and companies in Africa that has distinguished itself as an african gem. Coming from a background of a continent where airlines are condemned left right and centre, KQ operates more than 50 flights daily out of its Nairobi JKIA hub, feeding into and out of over 25 African countries, 3 European cities and 5 Middle and Far Eastern Countries. KQ has daily flights to Douala, Lagos (X5 per week), Kinshasa (X5 per week), Accra (X5 per week), Abidjan, Lusaka, Lilongwe, Harare (X6 weekly) Sudan, Uganda (Upto X4 daily), Tanzania (Upto X4 daily), Rwanda, Burundi, Egypt not forgetting double dailies to Johannesburg. KQ flies daily to London and Amsterdam (in Europe), Dubai and Mumbai in the East. KQ also flies at least 3 times a week to Hongkong, Bangkok, Gaungzhou and Paris. With this kind of schedule and growing, KQ effectively put an end to the days of connecting among African countries through Europe. KQ’s fleet includes 4 state of the art Boeing 777’s with pax capacity of +320, 6 Boeing 767’s with pax capacity of +220 and a variety of 737 aircraft complement its fleet of total 23 aeroplanes. It has an order for 6 state of the art Boeing 787 planes due for delivery in 2010. Despite being ranked 5th African airline in terms of number of passengers and revenue (+2m pax & $670m in 05/06), it is the most profitable airline in Africa even above SAA who despite turning over more than 30% of Africas airline revenues ($2.2bn +), returned losses to the shareholder. KQ is 26% owned by KLM and recently (August 2006) received IOSA safety certification (The IATA equivalent of ISO certification but this focuses on safety of the operations only). Be the judge.
As a white man who loves Africa and Africans I extend my sincere condolences to the families of those lost and the broader community and nations they represent. My thoughts and prayers are with you.
I have had the privilege of living in your fabulous continent for 22 years and travelling extensively in 50 of the continents countries. I lived in Abidjan 7 yrs and have flown on KQ 507 many times.
I have covered the length and breadth of the continent by air in aircraft as small as a 1961 Cessna 180 to the latest KQ 777’s. Yes there are bad ‘fly by night’ airlines with terrible records but to lump Kenya Airways with them is an injustice. It has made fantastic strides in the last few years and I will continue to fly with them by preference.
It seems to me that the bigger issues the African air industry faces are the backup systems for Air travel including airport security, baggage handling and flight monitoring. These are not evenly developed and they remain a challenge. Africa is a challenging continent to fly in. High altitude weather patterns, afternoon thermals and runways not to mention the monsoonal rains of west and central Africa. But Africa is producing competent, highly trained crews as evidenced by the “pilot drain” to other parts of the world. Last September I flew from Eldoret in Kenya to Nairobi in an Air kenya turbo-prop. It was night and we threaded our way around massive thunderstorms over the rift valley. The captain and first officer were brilliant by any standards. They were both female and highly professional. Way to go Kenya! Don’t let this get you down. Build on what is good, change what needs to be changed and keep your pride in the “Pride of Africa.’
i. some people have no kind words at all to their friends suffering a loss like that one of the KQ. This is too bad.
ii. if douala is an ill-eqipped airport, the first thing to do is just to close the airport until they completely have things fixed right. This is no laughing matter here. Less we are playing with human life/ our own dear life. Yes, the same thing can happen again when it could and can be avoided….Prevention is better than cure. I still believe that this mess of Douala could have been avoided…don’t you think so? Yes. Yes.
iii. In event of a bad weather or grave storm, there must be an obvious stern ruling for all planes not take off until the weather has completely cleared up and the airport officials mandate flights a go head to their diffent destinations. (other planes waited while kenya decided to leave in bad weather)
iv. Or if the weather is bad for the plane to take off and it is being confirmed by the airport officials that it is not yet possible for any plane… But then the pilot or a few people presumably from among the passengers pressurizes, let a few other passengers who are afraid to take that same flight as a result of bad weather be offered a provosion for another flight. I say this because it is possible that some from among those who died in the flight could have liked the option not to fly that mid-night in the event that they had option(b) in place- i mean provision for exceptional cases like that one of the terrible storm in Douala…. Thus, since there was nothing in place as option (b), all those on board had no alternative except to jump onto that damned plane.
I wish to send my heartfelt condolences to the families of the Kenya airways crash victims. I personally fail to understand some of the emerging facts that the crush was just but 5.42km from tha runway.May be a more layman’s or should i say more technical explanations are needed to demistify the fact that the plane was within a walking distance from the runway.Are there any security measures within the proximity of the airport? Poleni sana wenzangu. Bwana Henry Otieno as a friend I am with you in this time of grieve.
Firstly, Poleni(Condolences) to the families and friends of those who were lost on this flight. We know not how to comfort you but to say tuko pamoja (we stand together).
Please do not blame KQ, they have lost more than you can imagine, as a workforce and as a national carrier and flagbearer. I have realised how closely we are connected as friends have lost a beloved mother among those 9 crew.
We are one Kenya, and in the words of Nikki Giovanni, “We shall prevail”
After the truth and it will come out one day. If the pilot wanted to commit suicide in this way or there were some some “scrambles/or sabotage” from within/or without the crew members, the truth will come out. But in all it was really unfortunate that the whole 114 on board went missing. “Pole” to all the families going through this big loss. Yes, you cannot buy human life from anywhere in this world. But you can always buy a new and better aircraft from anywhere in the world!!!
It has taken me so long to come to terms with the plane crash in my country and to talk of how things have been handled; the time it took the so-called Cameroonian aviation authority to locate the plane, lack of hierachy concerns and worse still the lack of a radar.
No matter what the cause is let Cameroon get a radar for all the airports in Cameroon, change their carefree attitude when it comes to tragic events like this that has shaken the world and at least show love and concern to others.
KQ we are all behind you and we will continue praying for the good work you are doing for Africa and the world at large.
To the friends and families, accept my heart felt condolence and for everthing that happenes give praises to God. WE WILL CONTINUE PRAYING FOR YOU.
[...] After the tragic crash of Kenyan Flight KQ507 in Cameroon early this year, KBW reacted by setting up a website for online tributes, Pamoja. [...]
I am totally upset by what happened to our kenya airways plane. it is very sad to loss such ammount of people and i will forever moan with the families who lost their beloved.
However,i am mad with the people who have just commented that they cant fly again with the kenya airways.Why?? it is very safe to fly with them,it is one of the best airlines,i have flown with them like 20 times and it is very safe!!!
The problem here is not the AFRICAN SKIES!!! the problem is what is happening in the west african states!! and the controll towers there,why cant u just improve your communications equipment??? instead of talking afterwards and blame everyone for your fault!!
And,how safe is the EUROPEAN AND AMERICAN SKIES????? WE HAVE SEEN AND HEARD OF THE PLANES COLLIDING IN THE AIR!! AND OTHERS SKIDDING OFF THE RUN WAY!!! WHICH ONE IS BETTER?? SO,STOP POINTING FINGERS AT AFRICA, WHEN DISASTOR STRIKES, IT DOESNT CHOOSE IF U HAVE THE SAFEST SKIES OR NOT!! INSTEAD, CONSOLE ONE ANOTHER COZ TOMORROW,IT MIGHT BE YOU!!!
CIAO!!
Considering that pilot error is the cause of most air accidents in USA (general aviation), one might assume that this could also apply for Africa, where flight conditions are often more difficult (Cameroon!), even for a great carrier as KQ.
Meanwhile, we are still waiting for the report of the Abidjan crash to be published, that for the Cameroon accident would be welcome too. Would the KQ spokesperson kindly dvise when they will be made available? Or do we have to assume that pilot error was the cause for both accidents? The silence might work against you.
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[...] Breaking News, Disaster, Travel. This post is also available in: fr: … do I have to fly British airways and go through London, then turn around and … Continue…. [...]
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