Nov 5 (Reuters) - Kenya Airways PLC said it was experiencing disruptions to its flight schedule after its pilot union began a strike on Saturday, despite the government urging them to it call off.

The strike, which was due to start at 6.00 am local time (0300 GMT), will affect thousands of business and leisure travellers at one of the most important aviation hubs in the African continent.

The pilots union had said it would call a strike over a dispute on pensions contributions and settlement of deferred pay for its members after a 14-day notice had passed without the airline's management addressing their grievances.

The airline had described the planned strike as unlawful and warned that it could jeopardise its recovery from the pandemic, and the airline could at a minimum lose 300 million shillings ($2.5 million) a day. (Reporting by Akriti Sharma in Bengaluru; Editing by Michael Perry)