Passenger uproar: Brussels Airlines’ two-day ordeal in Kinshasa, DRC

For two days, a Brussels Airlines Airbus A330-300 (registered OO-SFF) has attempted to fly back to Brussels, Belgium, from the airport of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Yesterday evening, the patience of the passengers had worn thin: they stormed the tarmac as a protest.  

On the evening of 15 September, passengers and crew awaited the take-off but due to an exploded engine starter, the airline was forced to cancel flight SN358. Another attempt was made on 16 September, but this time the cargo fire detection failed. Brussels Airlines could do nothing else but cancel the flight, again.

After the passengers heard the news, about seventy furious passengers stormed onto the tarmac and gathered around the aircraft leaving the crew inside the – by then – closed aircraft.

Ground staff, security and police were able to keep the angry mob from storming the aircraft and – after about 45 minutes – the passengers returned to the airport terminal.

Passengers inside the terminal spoke on an Instagram clip, a summary of comments: “We have been waiting for 48 hours, and we are exhausted and anxious. Moreover, no one is providing us with any assistance regarding the delay. We feel like we’re being treated unfairly, with no provisions for food or drinks, and no assistance with our luggage. We are requesting a replacement aircraft.”

A new attempt to return to Brussels has been scheduled for this evening, 21:35 (local time) as SN1360.

Based on Flightradar24 data, the airline has more long-haul network woes as a surge in cancellations was noted in September, as passengers on flights to New York (4 cancellations) and Washington (6 cancellations since the end of August) seem to suffer the most.