A Kenya Airways plane was forced to make a turnback following a bird strike immediately after taking off in Entebbe, Uganda.
Accoridng to the airline, the incident was promptly communicated to the passengers before they made the turnback and safe landing at the airport.
“Kenya Airways (KQ) confirms that on 24 May 2026 at around 10:02Hrs EAT, KQ421 on a scheduled flight from Entebbe to Nairobi experienced a bird strike after take off.
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Upon following the safety procedures and informing our guests onboard, our crew elected to return to Entebbe International Airport, landing safely at 10:41hrs local time. All passengers and crew onboard safely disembarked,” said KQ
It was cofirmed that the plane experienced steering challenges after the incident even as engineers embarked on servicing it.
Its is due to the issue that Kenya Airways confirmed delays in its services as they work on reducing the overload caused.
“The bird strike affected the aircraft steering components and our engineers and airport officials are working round the clock to return the aircraft back to service as soon as possible. We estimate the aircraft should be back to service by 20:00hrs later today.
As a result of this bird strike some of our scheduled flights for today may experience some delays as we recover the network.
We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused to our guests and re assure them that their safety and that of our staff remains our number one priority. Our teams are in contact with affected guests and are working diligently to provide the necessary care and assistance for their comfort,” they said
