Washington, DC — Kenyan government officials have reacted angrily to the abrupt cancellation this week of a new direct flight from Atlanta, Georgia in the United States to Nairobi.
The U.S. carrier, Delta Airlines, planned to launch flights from Atlanta to both Nairobi and Monrovia, Liberia. But it was forced to postpone the inaugural flights after the U.S. Department of Homeland Security denied approval, citing security concerns in Kenya and infrastructure problems at Monrovia's airport.
According to a report in Kenya's Daily Nation, foreign minister Moses Wetang'ula was upset that the news was posted online before the government was informed. At a press conference with the U.S. ambassador to Kenya, Michael Ranneberger, Wetang'ula said: “Things can be done in a much better manner. Great friends like Kenya and America do not have to communicate through web site postings.”
U.S. Embassy officials in Nairobi appear to have been left out of the loop on the Department of Homeland Security's decision until the last minute. On Monday, the East African Standard published an opinion piece in which Ranneberger praised Delta's decision to fly to Kenya as a “new era” for U.S.-Kenya relations.
He also remarked on recent upgrades in airport security: “Delta’s launch is the fruit of many years’ work by the U.S. and Kenya. We have cooperated in advancing ‘Safe Skies for Africa’, and working together with our Transportation Safety Administration, Kenya Airport Authority and Kenya Civil Aviation Authority have recently upgraded security measures at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to protect all air travellers.”
In 2008, Ranneberger traveled with Prime Minister Raila Odinga to the U.S. to sign agreements allowing the planned flights. Elaborate ceremonies had been planned to celebrate the first direct flight to Kenya from the United States, and Kenya sent transport minister Chirau Ali Mwakwere to ride on the inaugural flight.
Mwakwere was already in the U.S. when news of the flight cancellations reached Delta, and later, the Kenyan government. Mwakwere and other passengers who had already bought tickets for the flight were rebooked on flights with Delta partners through European hubs, according to a statement issued by Delta.
Another report in the Daily Nation said the flight was cancelled because “...hours before the maiden flight, American intelligence learnt of a possible attack on aircraft using JKIA [Jomo Kenyatta International Airport] by terrorists armed with shoulder-launched missiles, similar to the ones used on a botched raid against an Israeli airliner in Mombasa seven years ago” and that “... a flurry of high-level consultation within the Obama government preceded the decision by U.S. Homeland Security secretary Janet Napolitano to stop the flight.”
Delta responded to the decision in a statement saying: “Delta appreciates DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano’s continued focus on finalizing approvals for Delta’s direct service to Africa as quickly as possible. Delta in October 2008 notified the U.S. government of its plans to offer new service to Kenya and Liberia. However, Delta was informed only yesterday by DHS that it would require additional time to approve these new flights.”
An opinion piece by Jerry Okungu in Uganda's New Vision newspaper says the news of the flight cancellation hit Kenya like a “thunderbolt”: “The Delta fiasco is a blow not only to Kenya but the rest of Africa. This flight would have made travel between East Africa and North America a mere 12-hour flight as opposed to the current 20-hour journey with between four and 10-hour layovers in Europe.”
Okungu writes that the news is not altogether unexpected, as “a week never passes without an unpleasant message from the White House” and that “to add insult to injury, Obama’s sudden invitation of Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania to the White House instead of Kibaki has spoken volumes of [Obama's] opinion of Kenya’s current leadership.”
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On May 21, Kikwete became the first African president to meet with President Barack Obama in the White House, and the two leaders reportedly discussed the political situation in Kenya.
The U.S. State Department has retained a travel warning for U.S. travelers to Kenya since November 2008.
Delta currently flies to seven African counties, and, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the airline has already invested “nearly $1 billion” in its Africa operations.
Delta recently added flights between Atlanta and Cape Town, South Africa, and Abuja, Nigeria via Dakar and non-stop flights from Atlanta to Johannesburg. Delta also plans to launch direct flights from Lagos, Nigeria to Atlanta on June 9.
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Delta has plans to fly to “Luanda, Angola, and Malabo, Equatorial Guinea via Sal, Cape Verde, pending government approvals.”
