On Wednesday, July 27, a wide-bodied aircraft landed at the busy Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) carrying crucial election material, ballot papers.
Ballot papers will arrive in two phases; July 29 and August 3 - IEBC
An Airbus A330 cargo flight belonging to Cairo Air was used to transport election material from Greece
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The plane, an Airbus A330 is the third most delivered wide-body airliner after the Boeing 777 and Boeing 747.
The A330 was Airbus's first airliner to offer a choice of three engines: the General Electric CF6, Pratt & Whitney PW4000, or the Rolls-Royce Trent 700.
According to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), the Egypt Air cargo plane was carrying 225 pallets as well as a delegation that had toured the Inform Lykos (Hellas) SA company in Greece to oversee the printing of ballot papers.
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“The process of printing the ballot papers is still ongoing in Athens, and the remaining pallets will be delivered in two phases. 300 pallets are set to arrive on July 29, and the final consignment of 345 pallets to arrive on August 3, days before Kenyans go to the polls,” revealed IEBC Vice Chair Juliana Cherera.
IEBC Vice chair Juliana Cherere led a 14-member team that flew to Athens, Greece last week to witness the printing of the ballot papers
Pulse Live Kenya
Why IEBC selected the Airbus A330
The plane offers better payload, range and economics than previous-generation freighters in its class.
According to Airbus, the A330 flies 20% further and has a cost per tonne that is 13% lower than its direct competitor. It is capable of carrying 65-to-70 tonnes of payload, with a range that stretches from 3,200 newton-metres up to 4,000 newton-metres.
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While in Greece, the IEBC team inspected security features on ballot papers, & witnessed printing, packaging of ballot papers into booklets, boxes, palettes & labelling ready for shipment.
They also verified security features on statutory documents printed to accompany ballot papers to polling station.
"The delegation was shown how Inform Lykos company destroys damaged ballot papers, a process they carry out daily using shredding machines," stated IEBC.
IEBC Vice chair Juliana Cherere led a 14-member team that flew to Athens, Greece last week to witness the printing of the ballot papers
Pulse Live Kenya
In September 2020, the A330 reached a milestone of 1500 deliveries, Airbus's first twin-aisle aircraft to do so, and the third overall after the Boeing 747 and 777.
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