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Fastjet Zimbabwe has apologised for the inconvenience to its loyal customers and airline supporters for the recent changes to their schedules and delays that have affected travellers in recent days.
Mr. Nunurai Ndawana, the Fastjet Zimbabwe spokesperson said the disruption to the airline’s schedule was caused by a combination of factors.
“Earlier this week, one of the airline’s aircraft was involved in a bird strike whilst on its approach into Harare, RG Mugabe International Airport, with damage requiring an outsized replacement part which needed specialised shipping to Harare. The part was fitted yesterday in accordance with the manufacturer’s approved maintenance procedures. The aircraft has since returned to regular service today operating the airline’s published timetable.
“This untimely and unforeseeable bird strike event coincided with one of the airline’s other aircraft being in scheduled maintenance which was planned in accordance with the approved maintenance programme. These two events meant that both aircraft were out of the airline’s operational fleet simultaneously, necessitating changes to the flying programme,” Mr. Ndawana said.
The airline has also experienced some disruptions due to adverse weather conditions at some of the airports it flies to over the last week, which impacts subsequent flights throughout the day.
Mr Ndawana said whilst the majority of flights are operating to the published times, some flights may still experience unintended disruptions as Fastjet operations and customer services teams work to return flights to the usual reliable services.
He said where the situation permits, the airline shall make endeavours to contact all affected customers.
“Managing unplanned disruptions is likely to affect the network schedule, and we make all efforts to minimise the impact on our valued customers whilst ensuring that safety remains our top priority,
“The airline has established itself as an industry leader in reliability, and though the majority of flights continue to operate on time, the airline is sorry for the disruption and uncertainty created amongst travellers.”