Kenya Airways, Kenya's national carrier, has halted its flights to Kinshasa due to the ongoing detention of its crew by the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)’s military concerning a contentious shipment of banknotes.

The airline announced the suspension on Monday, indicating that it will be effective from Tuesday.

Kenya Airways cited challenges in overseeing and supporting its operations in Kinshasa as reasons for the decision.

“Due to the continued detention of KQ employees by the Military Intelligence Unit in Kinshasa, Kenya Airways is unable to support our flights without personnel effectively. As a result, we reached a difficult decision to suspend flights to Kinshasa effective April 30, 2024, until we can effectively support these flights,” said the carrier’s managing director, Allan Kilavuka, in the notice.

“The continued detention of our employees has made it difficult for us to supervise our operations in Kinshasa, which include customer service, ground handling, cargo activities, and generally ensuring safe, secure, and efficient operations.”

The decision made by KQ is expected to provide opportunities for other airlines operating the Nairobi-Kinshasa route, such as Ethiopian Airlines, Precision Air, ASKY Airlines, and South African Airways.

Last week, Mr. Kilavuka disclosed that two employees of the airline were arrested and detained on April 19, 2024, due to alleged missing customs documentation related to valuable cargo intended for shipment on a KQ flight on April 12, 2024. However, the said cargo was not uplifted or accepted by Kenya Airways due to incomplete documentation.

Mr. Kilavuka mentioned that military personnel in Kinshasa took the two employees to the military section of the air wing to provide statements but they were held without communication until April 23 when embassy officials and a KQ team were granted access to them.

Although DRC authorities have yet to comment on the situation, sources reported to The EastAfrican newspaper that the issue revolves around the transportation of $8 million that was seized before being loaded onto the KQ plane.