A video of a KQ 100 flight steered by Ruth Karauri navigating through the storm has been making rounds on social media.
Speaking after the landing, Ruth narrated about the extreme weather conditions she encountered and how she was able to maneuver.
Britain’s weather service had warned that Storm Eunice (which is the fifth named weather storm of the season, in the United Kingdom) was likely to cause disruption. And challenging landing conditions. Therefore, UK residents were urged to cancel travel plans and stay indoors amid fears of high winds and flying debris across Northern Europe.
This is Captain Ruth Karauri of the now-famous KQ100 at London Heathrow. With me is my first officer of the day, Ayoob Harunany. We had the pleasure of encountering storm Eunice at London Heathrow yesterday. We were landing on the Westerly Runway into Heathrow. She had excitedly said.
The flight conditions were strong gusting winds and it was quite a bumpy ride. She went on. However, thanks to the training we have had at Kenya Airways, particularly in the simulator, prepared us for such a scenario. We used all our training expertise and skills that we have managed to learn over the years at Kenya Airways and we handled the learning expertly,”
In a video shared on Youtube by Airport Arrivals, the Boeing 787 is seen slowly balancing its way through the heavy wind before slowly cross landing on the runway.
Husband reacts
Praises for Cpt. Karauri, who is the wife of former pilot Ronald Karauri, now a businessman and SportPesa CEO. Mr Karauri have been aired continuously.
Ronald praised his wife saying that he was not surprised by her landing.
“I’m not surprised at all by how she landed at Heathrow with a lot of skill. I trust her capabilities,” Ronald said. I am proud of her. She has always been a very good pilot. She did Kenya Airways ab initio from the year 2002,”
More praise
The UK’s High Commissioner to Kenya Jane Mariott said on Twitter: “Hongera Capt. Ruth Karauri on the successful landing during Storm Eunice!”
Energy Cabinet Secretary Monica Juma also said: “Kudos, Ruth Karauri. You and the first officer are stars!”
Watch video below