Mali fuel shortage causes flight cancellations and disruption

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

Dakar, Senegal — A fuel shortage at Mali’s main international airport led to flight cancellations and disruption on Wednesday, according to several air transport stakeholders.

The West African country’s civil aviation agency has asked the regional air traffic control body ASECNA to notify airspace users of the “unavailability of Jet A1 fuel” at the capital Bamako’s Modibo-Keita international airport from Tuesday until the end of July 15, in an official document seen by AFP.

Jet A1 is a kerosene-type fuel widely used in civil aviation.

READ: Mali junta says ‘Western-backed’ military officers attempted coup

AFP was unable to obtain any official information from the Malian Civil Aviation Agency or the airport about the causes of the shortage.

Since 2012, Mali has been plunged into a deep political, security and economic crisis, which is having a severe impact on supplies. The West African nation has been ruled by a military junta since back-to-back coups in 2020 and 2021.

The domestic airline Sky Mali told AFP it had cancelled its flights linking Bamako and the western city of Kayes, as well as its Bamako-Timbuktu route on Wednesday.

It did not comment on its flights scheduled for the weekend.

Turkish Airlines cancelled various flights, including its Istanbul-Bamako route scheduled for Wednesday. Ethiopian Airlines also brought forward its morning Dakar-Bamako flight on Wednesday.

All the airlines cited a “shortage” or “unavailability” of fuel in Bamako in their notices.