Afghanistan: Kam Air allegedly took 155 kin of firm's top brass instead of evacuees to UAE, claim reports
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Afghan private airline Kam Air transferred around 155 family members of the company's leadership to Abu Dhabi. The flight was scheduled to evacuate scribes and others. But it flew with only families of the airline's leadership. The plane was also only half-filled. US State department discovered the evacuees were not on the list when the flight landed. The claims have been refuted by the Kam Air officials
In a striking revelation, an Afghan private airline company Kam Air transferred around 155 family members of the company's leadership to Abu Dhabi, said media reports.
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The flight was scheduled to evacuate scribes and other persons out of the country. At the last moment, it flew with only families of the airline's leadership. The plane was only half-filled.
According to the report, US State department discovered the evacuees were not on the list when the plane landed in the United Arab Emirates.
The claims have been denied by the Kam Air officials, saying the company was not picking evacuees. It was only responsible for transferring them, they said.
Kam Air chief executive Mohammad Dawood Sharifi, said, “We had only two flights--to Abu Dhabi and Tbilisi. They went according to the list. Because many people remain in Afghanistan, they make these claims that Kam Air took some families and relatives.”
The passengers, who were not on the list, are still in Abu Dhabi. Their fate is uncertain.
"I am a journalist working here, and still here. This has negatively affected my soul that someone misused my identity (being a journalist) and went out of the country,” said Jawad Etimad, a journalist.
(With inputs from agencies)