Kenya Airways cancels at least one flight in row with pilots

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenya Airways cancelled at least one flight after a row with its pilots led to them refusing to take on extra shifts and disrupting the schedule, it said on Friday. The flag carrier, which is part-owned by Air France KLM, took on debt to buy new planes but has struggled in recent months to fill them due to Islamist attacks in Kenya and an Ebola outbreak. Earlier this month, the carrier asked 10 of its senior pilots to take early retirement, angering their union, which then asked its members not to take on extra shifts, known in labour terms as "withdrawal of goodwill". "The flight KQ 102 to London scheduled to depart at 2355 hours last evening was delayed and left this morning at 1000 hours. The delay was due to a crew scheduling issue that was resolved," the carrier said. It was not immediately clear if additional flights would be disrupted. The union and the airline are in talks, an official said. A further 15 passengers flying through Nairobi from Dubai missed a connecting flight to Kinshasa after their flight from Dubai was delayed, adding to frustrations among some passengers. The airline said this was due to the closure of Yemeni airspace. A Saudi Arabia-led coalition has begun airstrikes against rebel fighters in Yemen who are allied to Iran.