Planes expected to land at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) on the morning of Thursday, June 11, were diverted to the Moi International Airport in Mombasa for an emergency drill exercise.

🇰🇪 Breaking It Down

At 12:28pm, the Kenya Red Cross said a plane had crash-landed at the airport, and rescue operations were underway.

"An aircraft incident involving a crash landing has been reported at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA)," Kenya Red Cross said.

However, about 20 minutes later, the agency said the incident was a drill exercise.

📌 What You Need to Know

"The situation at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) relates to a scheduled emergency response simulation exercise," Kenya Red Cross said.

The Kenya Airports Authority (KAA), on the other hand, confirmed the incident at about 12:08pm, saying emergency response teams had been deployed at the airport.

"KAA is currently responding to an emergency situation at JKIA. Emergency response teams and agencies have been activated and are managing the situation in accordance with established emergency procedures," the authority said.

Initial efforts by Kenyans.co.ke to obtain additional details from the authority were unsuccessful.

Moments later, at around 1:08pm, KAA confirmed that the emergency was a simulation exercise conducted as part of a Full-Scale Emergency Exercise, with normal operations resuming.

"The emergency situation earlier reported at JKIA was a simulated scenario conducted as part of a planned Full-Scale Emergency Exercise. The drill has been successfully concluded. Normal airport operations continue. We thank all stakeholders for their cooperation."

📰 Source: Kenyans.co.ke