There was a scare on Monday night when a Nairobi-bound flight from Paris developed a mechanical hitch mid-air.
The Air France, Flight AF814, was then forced to divert and return to the Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, France.
Reports say that the pilot of the plane that had been airborne for about two hours explained to the passengers that the plane, a Boeing 787-900 had a glitch with its de-icing system.
The pilot said one engine was unable to complete the process.
De-icing is a critical maintenance process of removing snow, ice, or frost from an aircraft's surface.
According to the National Aviation Academy, aircraft are designed to fly with clean surfaces, and during colder periods of the year, icy materials can build up, disrupt airflow, and interfere with a safe take-off.
Air France partner company KLM, also noted that the flight would be delayed, in a statement after the incident.
“Unfortunately, your flight AF814 from Paris (CDG) to Nairobi (NBO) on 16.10.2023 has been delayed. We sincerely apologise for this inconvenience. KLM will keep you informed of any updates.”
The flight is, however, set to embark on the journey to Kenya later on Tuesday. A spot-check with Flight Aware confirmed the same.
The flight scare comes a few days after a Nairobi to Heathrow flight was intercepted by RAF fighters and diverted to Stansted Airport over a "potential security threat".
A London Stansted spokeswoman said the Kenya Airways Boeing 787 "landed safely with Essex Police in attendance".
According to CEO Allan Kilavuka, there was suspicion of some of the people on board. But nothing to do with a bomb or anything like that.
"The precautions that we were taking was because that threat had been raised and so we just wanted to make sure that there was nothing untoward."
