Ebola: commercial flights from Bunia suspended until 8 February
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Le Potentiel
Commercial flights to and from Bunia, in Ituri, will remain suspended until 8 February 2027 after a new extension took effect on 8 November 2026. The measure comes amid the response to the Ebola outbreak, which had recorded 9,552 confirmed cases and 4,602 deaths as of 18 October, according to Le Potentiel.
Commercial flights to and from Bunia, in the Congolese province of Ituri, will remain suspended until 23:59 UTC on 8 February 2027. The new notice to airmen, referenced B0206/26 by the Aeronautical Information Division of the Régie des voies aériennes (RVA), concerns Bunia's Murongo aerodrome, identified by ICAO code FZKA, and took effect on 8 November at 08:45.
NOTAM B0206/26 replaces notice B0148/26 and maintains the ban on all commercial flights to and from Bunia. The measure is part of the response to the 17th Ebola virus disease outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, declared on 15 May 2026, following several suspensions and a temporary resumption of flights with enhanced health checks.
As of 18 October, the Democratic Republic of the Congo had 9,552 confirmed cases and 4,602 deaths, while Ituri had a total of 6,960 cases, accounting for nearly 73% of the national total. Provincial elected officials are nevertheless calling for a controlled resumption of traffic: national MP Néné Kashinde Avodjoa contacted Deputy Prime Minister in charge of Transport Jean-Pierre Bemba on 19 October, then MP Jean-Marie Akandabo Imbay called on 21 October for the airport to reopen with a health surveillance system.
