Senior Counsel Paul Muite and members of his family have threatened legal action against Kenya Airways over the cancellation of a Zanzibar-Nairobi flight, demanding refunds, reimbursement of expenses and compensation for what they describe as poor handling of the disruption.
In a demand letter dated September 7, 2026, lawyers acting for Muite, his wife and other family members gave Kenya Airways seven days to resolve the dispute or face court proceedings.
The dispute relates to Kenya Airways flight KQ491, which was scheduled to depart Zanzibar for Nairobi on August 31.
According to the letter, the passengers arrived at Zanzibar Airport at about 8.10am after allegedly checking Kenya Airways' online platforms, which indicated the flight was scheduled to operate.
The lawyers claim the passengers were also informed at the airport that the flight was on schedule, after which they checked in their luggage and proceeded through immigration.
However, the departure board later changed the flight's status to "delayed", with the passengers alleging they received no clear communication from the airline on the cause of the delay or whether the flight would eventually operate.
They were eventually informed later in the day that the flight had been cancelled.
"The cancellation was not communicated directly by a Kenya Airways representative," the lawyers claim in the letter, adding that the passengers were instead informed by an employee at Zanzibar Airport.
The family further alleges that Kenya Airways did not provide food, refreshments or accommodation during the prolonged wait, despite there being a three-year-old child among the passengers.
Muite had also raised the communication concerns publicly on August 31.
"Communicating to us your passengers who pay for the tickets is the minimum you can do when there're flight delays or cancellations," he wrote in a post addressed to Kenya Airways and Kenya Airports Authority.
"Sitting for hours after checking in with zero communication is the height of rudeness to your customers."
The lawyers say the family was forced to arrange a private charter flight from Zanzibar to Nairobi after failing to secure an alternative commercial flight.
They are demanding reimbursement of USD20,500 allegedly spent on the charter flight, together with Sh52,650 in related expenses. They also want Kenya Airways to refund 50 per cent of the Sh596,450 paid for the return tickets, amounting to Sh298,225.
Invoices attached to the demand letter show a Sh52,650 Zanzibar trip service charge and a separate Sh596,450 invoice for return flight tickets.
The family is also seeking general damages for what the lawyers describe as inconvenience, distress, disruption and loss of amenity arising from the cancellation.
Muite's lawyers have further demanded a written explanation on why the flight continued to appear as scheduled on the airline's official channels, why passengers were allowed to check in and pass through immigration, and why alternative transport, accommodation, meals or rebooking support was allegedly not provided.
The letter argues that Kenya Airways' handling of the incident may have breached its contractual and statutory obligations, although these allegations have not been determined by a court.
The lawyers warned that failure to resolve the matter within seven days would result in legal proceedings seeking recovery of the claimed amounts, damages and legal costs.
Kenya Airways is yet respond to the letter.
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