KQ flight to New York turned back to Nairobi after spoiler malfunction

According to the airline, KQ002D, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, experienced a flight control spoiler malfunction while flying over Chad.

“For the safety of our guests and crew onboard, the crew followed precautionary safety checks and elected to return to Nairobi for further technical evaluation by our teams,” KQ said in a statement on Monday. 

The national carrier further noted that while spoiler malfunctions are rare, when they occur, they cause increased drag and fuel consumption. 

“Our pilots are trained to proficiently handle these scenarios safely, and air turnbacks are standard safety procedures,” said KQ.

The flight experienced the malfunction at around 19:50Hrs, and was scheduled to land back at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) on Monday 00:30Hrs.

“We sincerely apologise to our customers for the inconvenience and assure them that their safety and that of our crew are our highest priority,” said the airline. 

KQ also promised to assist customers with their travel itinerary on the next available flight as soon as possible.