KLM has cancelled several flights to the Ugandan city of Entebbe. The airline made this decision due to travel restrictions that other countries imposed following an ebola outbreak in Central Africa. A spokeswoman for the airline confirmed the cancellations after an initial report by NH Nieuws.
The airline cancelled three flights from Schiphol to Uganda, which were scheduled for 30 May, 1 June, and 3 June. KLM has not yet made a decision regarding future flights between the Netherlands and Uganda. The company still schedules flights to Entebbe for this coming Friday and Saturday, which include a stopover in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda.
The spokeswoman emphasizes that KLM currently sees no health risks for passengers or crew. Instead, the airline cancelled the flights because other countries are blocking travellers who visited Entebbe in the past three weeks. These entry bans create scheduling conflicts for KLM, as crew members face restrictions when deploying to other destinations. KLM reports that it has rebooked affected passengers onto other airlines.
Authorities confirmed an ebola outbreak in the northeastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo in mid-May. Due to the situation, officials halted commercial air traffic from the capital airport of the affected Ituri province roughly ten days ago, though that airport has since reopened. Health officials have now also detected the deadly virus in neighbouring Uganda.
@ anp | NEWS BRAINPORT
