By Frank Kamuntu
Yesterday, Kenya placed Tanzania in the list of countries whose citizens are exempted from the 14-day mandatory quarantine upon arrival into the country.
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A statement from Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority (TCAA) on Wednesday read, “The resumption and restoration of flights for all Kenyan operators namely Kenya Airways, Fly 540 Limited, Safarilink Aviation and Airkenya Express Limited is with immediate effect.”
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There are now 147 countries in the list released by the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA), including East African member states of Rwanda, Uganda, South Sudan, and Burundi.
This comes in the wake of a two-month-long flight row between the two countries.
READ ALSO: ‘You Said We’re Infected, No More Flying Into Tanzania’ Magufuli Bans More Kenyan Airlines
Tanzania nullified its approval for Kenya Airways to fly in the country after Kenya declined to allow in Tanzanians into the country Nairobi allowed selected International flights.
Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority (TCAA) Director-General Hamza Johari told journalists that they were aware of the changes.
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“We have seen the statement, we are working on it before stating our position,” Johari said.
Late August, Tanzania banned three Kenyan airlines from its airspace. The Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority (TCAA) nullified the approval granted to Fly 540, Air Kenya Express, and Safarilink Aviation.
Johari said that the decision was based on the “ongoing dispute between the two countries”.
He further pointed out that the ban would not be lifted unless travelers from Tanzania were accorded the same treatment as those on the list of who was allowed into the Kenyan airspace.
“Some countries are allowed to enter Kenya without the same conditions despite having very high rates of COVID-19 infections,” he said.
TCAA said it would not allow any Kenya Airways flights between Nairobi, Dar es Salaam, Kilimanjaro and Zanzibar effective August 1.
Tanzanian authorities have maintained that the ban on Kenyan airlines would only be reviewed if Kenya dropped its nationals from the list.
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