Nairobi, On January 30, 2000, Kenya Airways flight number KQ431, operating a Airbus A310-300 aircraft, bound for Lagos and Nairobi, crashed shortly after take off from Abidjan at 9:08 PM . The jet was caring 168 passengers and 11 crew members crashes into Atlantic Ocean off the Ivory Coast .
Of the 179 onboard, only a hand full survived the crash. "Just after take-off the plane started having problems," said Samuel Ogbada Adje, a Nigerian survivor. "It wasn't quite balanced and the next thing we knew we were in the water." Several witnesses at the airport stated the plane never appeared to get sufficient altitude upon take off. Kenya Airways, serving 18 African destinations from our Nairobi hub began services in 1996, after emerging out of East African Airways which was owned by Ugabda, Tanznia and Kenya. Kenya Airways has emerged as a highly competitive international airline, operating over 10 jet aircraft.
