By Kemo Cham
Over 200 Air France passengers heading for Paris have been left stranded in the Gambian capital, Banjul after the plane which was scheduled to transit in the Guinean capital Conakry was prevented from landing there.
Representatives of Air France in Freetown, where the flight took off from, said bad weather condition prevented it from landing in Conakry, after several attempts by the pilot lasting for about an hour.
The plane, which had originated from Paris, transited in Freetown where it took on board 165 passengers.
Edgard D. Lacle, General Manager of African Solutions and Logistic Limited which represents Air France in the country, said over 200 passengers were onboard the flight when it took off at the Lungi International Airport.
Mr Lacle said the plane took off at around 10.17 pm. He explained that on arrival in Conakry, it was confronted by a heavy storm, but that the pilot hovered around for about an hour before deciding to go to Dakar, Senegal, where Air France flights are usually refueled.
According to the Air France representative, ideally the flight could have returned to Freetown, if not for the ongoing jet fuel crisis in country.
However, on its way to Dakar, the pilot was forced to divert to Banjul due to shortage of fuel. The Banjul International Airport is just about 45 minutes flight.
Mr Lacle said all the stranded passengers have been lodged in hotels pending arrangements for the next Air France flight schedule on Thursday.
Air France, a subsidiary of the Air France–KLM Group, is the French flag carrier and a founding member of the SkyTeam global airline alliance.
With an Airbus A330-200 aircraft, the carrier operates a direct service to Freetown, with three weekly frequencies from Paris Charles de Gaulle, transiting in Conakry on its return leg.
The flights operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
© 2019 Politico Online
