Piece by: MANNY ANYANGO

13 October 2023

• The Nairobi to Heathrow flight was intercepted by Royal Air Force (RAF) fighter jets and diverted to Stansted Airport over a "potential security threat".

In a comprehensive statement, KQ said the threat has since been established to have low credibility.

The intercepted Kenya Airways Boeing 787 did not have any security issues, the national carrier has said.

The Nairobi to Heathrow flight was intercepted by Royal Air Force (RAF) fighter jets and diverted to Stansted Airport over a "potential security threat".

In a comprehensive statement, KQ said the threat has since been established to have low credibility.

"We received a security alert on the 12th Oct 2023 at approximately 10:30 am, from the UK Security agencies. This threat has since been established to have low credibility," the statement read.

Kenya Airways said they alerted the relevant Operations team including the crew onboard.

According to the airline, necessary security measures were taken as per the KQ operating manuals.

"The aircraft landed safely at London Stansted Airport, the incident has been stood down and the airport is open and is operating as normal," the statement read.

KQ said security agencies cleared the aircraft and will be departing for London Heathrow to resume normal operations.

"We sincerely regret the inconvenience to our passengers and crew and would like to thank them for their patience. We would also like to thank our crew for their professionalism during this incident."

The airline said counseling support will be provided to the passengers and it will be communicated on how they will receive it.

A UK Ministry of Defence spokesman said: "RAF Typhoon fighter aircraft from RAF Coningsby were launched as a precaution this afternoon to investigate a civilian aircraft which was approaching the UK.

"The civilian aircraft remained in contact with air traffic controllers throughout, and was escorted to Stansted Airport where it landed safely. This incident is now under the control of the civilian authorities."

Essex Police said: "A flight travelling from Nairobi to Heathrow was diverted to Stansted this afternoon. The airport remains open."

Essex Police confirmed that Stansted was the designated airport for dealing with security risks in the UK.