The airline on Monday, August 31, announced the cancellation of flights WB452 and WB453 scheduled for the day, citing continued constraints affecting air traffic control services at the Kenyan airport.

“Due to ongoing operational constraints affecting air traffic control services at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (NBO), flights WB452/WB453 on 31 August 2026 have been cancelled,” RwandAir said in an official statement.

Affected passengers will be rebooked on the next available flight, while the airline said it was monitoring the situation in coordination with relevant authorities.

“We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused,” it added.

ATC Industrial Action Behind Flight Delays

While airline advisories and official communications from the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) attribute the crisis to "operational constraints," airport workers and union officials confirm the root cause is a strike and go-slow action organized by the Kenya Aviation Workers Union (KAWU) alongside staff from the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA).

Union representatives cite unresolved Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs), stagnant wages, and broader administrative disputes regarding airport management as the driving forces behind the industrial action. Air traffic controllers and ground staff downing tools has severely throttled aircraft movement in and out of Kenya’s primary aviation hub.

The cancellations follow a similar disruption on Sunday, when RwandAir cancelled flights WB402 and WB403 scheduled for August 30 due to the air traffic control slowdown at JKIA.

Widespread impact across international carriers

The disruptions have affected several airlines operating through the Nairobi airport, leaving thousands of passengers facing extended delays, cancellations, and flight diversions.

The Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) warned on August 30 that flight delays could affect some departing flights at airports across the country, while flag carrier Kenya Airways attributed its schedule disruptions directly to ATC limitations.

“The ongoing delays into and out of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) are due to operational constraints within Air Traffic Control (ATC) Services,” Kenya Airways said in an advisory.

Flight status information on FlightRadar24 showed several Kenya Airways services affected on Monday, including flights to Mumbai, Addis Ababa, Dubai, Juba, Kigali, Kinshasa, Johannesburg, Lusaka, and Lubumbashi.

Kenya Airways flight KQ205 to Mumbai was listed as cancelled, while KQ401 to Addis Ababa was also cancelled. Flights to Dubai, Juba, Kigali, and Kinshasa were listed as delayed, while KQ584 to Lubumbashi was diverted.

Other international carriers were also affected. Gulf Air flight GF707 to Bahrain was listed as cancelled, while Air Arabia flight G9734 to Sharjah was delayed.

Despite the disruptions, several other domestic and international flights remained scheduled, including services to Mombasa, Kisumu, Eldoret, Malindi, New York, Kilimanjaro, Entebbe, Sharjah, Zanzibar, Doha, and Addis Ababa.

Passengers travelling through JKIA have been strongly advised to confirm their flight status directly with their respective airlines before heading to the airport.