Last week, when aviation workers walked off the job at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and other airports in Kenya, the silence on the runway was immediate. Departure boards flickered from on time to delayed to cancelled. Long queues formed at airline counters. Families sat on luggage. Business travellers refreshed their phones in disbelief.
But while aircraft engines fell quiet, telephones inside travel agencies across Nairobi and beyond began ringing without pause.
The recent strike by aviation workers disrupted operations at Kenya’s main gateway, grounding flights and delaying departures for hours. JKIA is not just another airport. It is the artery through which millions of passengers travel each year and through which billions of shillings in tourism revenue and exports flow. Aviation contributes about 3 percent of Kenya’s GDP and supports more than 450,000 jobs directly and indirectly. When activity at the airport slows, the economy feels it almost instantly.
Passengers were stranded in terminals, some missing international connections, others sleeping in chairs while awaiting updates. Exporters worried about perishable cargo such as flowers and fresh produce destined for European markets. Hotels braced for cancellations. Tour operators recalculated itineraries.
Yet at the centre of this disruption stood a group often overlooked in ordinary times: travel agents.
In the age of online bookings, travel agents are sometimes dismissed as optional. The strike told a different story. As flights were cancelled and schedules rewritten by the hour, travellers did not log into apps seeking comfort. They called their agents.
Inside small offices and large agencies alike, staff worked late into the night. They negotiated rebookings with airlines, searched for alternative routes through regional hubs, secured hotel rooms for stranded clients, and explained shifting regulations. Each cancelled ticket meant lost commission. Each rebooking required hours of coordination. For many agencies operating on narrow margins, the financial strain was immediate.
Industry players estimate that major flight disruptions can wipe out millions of shillings in ticket sales and generate high additional costs within days. Beyond revenue losses lies reputational risk. When a client misses a wedding, a conference, or a medical appointment, it is often the agent who absorbs the frustration.
The strike also reminded the public of the indispensable role of aviation workers themselves. Air traffic controllers, ground handlers, engineers, security personnel, and emergency crews perform safety-critical duties that make every departure possible. Aircraft cannot legally take off without their coordination. Their grievances, centred on working conditions and labour agreements, brought operations to a halt and exposed how dependent the system is on skilled human labour.
Still, what stood out most was the quiet resilience of travel professionals. They became interpreters of chaos, translating uncertainty into options. They reassured anxious parents. They rearranged safaris and business itineraries. They kept communication flowing between airlines and passengers when official channels were overwhelmed.
Kenya positions itself as East Africa’s aviation hub. Stability at JKIA is therefore a matter of national interest. Repeated disruptions risk damaging investor confidence and tourism growth. Preventing future crises requires structured dialogue between unions and management, timely resolution of labour agreements, and coordinated contingency planning that includes travel agencies as essential partners rather than afterthoughts.
The strike was a reminder that aviation is not sustained by infrastructure alone. It is powered by people. When the runway falls silent, it is travel agents who keep journeys alive in different ways. They protect relationships, salvage plans, and preserve trust in a fragile moment.
When the planes stopped, the nation saw who truly keeps it moving.
