Kenya Airways’ Passenger Dies Boarding Aircraft

Kenya Airways has confirmed the death of a passenger, who was boarding a flight to Mombasa in Kenya on Wednesday evening.

According to a Kenyan news outlet, The Standard, the victim is the third Kenya Airways passenger to die in the last one month.

In a statement dated September 14, 2022, the Airline’s Corporate Communications said the passenger developed sudden breathing difficulties while boarding the flight.

The statement reads, “KQ regrets to announce that a passenger developed breathing difficulties this evening while boarding KQ612 that was scheduled for Mombasa at 1900hours.”

According to Kenya Airways, the passenger [identity withheld] was pronounced dead by personnel at JKIA before the aircraft took off.

“The JKIA Health and Security agencies are currently handling the issue. We convey our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the deceased during this difficult time,” KQ added.

It could be recalled that on September 2, a male passenger aged 66 died enroute Nairobi from New York. He also developed breathing complications. The flight was rerouted to Morocco for the passenger to seek medical attention. He, however, was announced dead on arrival.

“Upon further medical examination, personnel confirmed that the passenger had passed away. The flight had departed Nairobi per schedule on Thursday, September 1 at 11.55 pm,” the airline said at the time.

The first incident involved a male passenger on board KQ003 who died on August 22. The flight was forced to make an emergency landing in Casablanca but the passenger was already unresponsive.