Emirates passenger plane flies nearly 9,000 miles in 13 hours to reach same airport. Here's what happened
1 min read . Updated: 30 Jan 2023, 10:43 PM IST
PremiumThe plane was scheduled for New Zealand's Auckland Airport. Due to severe flooding, the airport remained closed on weekend
In an unusual incident, an Emirates flight that started from Dubai on Friday morning flew 9,000 miles to land at the same airport 13 hours later. Apparently, the plane was scheduled for New Zealand's Auckland Airport. But due to severe flooding, the airport remained closed on the weekend.
As per FlightAware, the pilot decided to take a U-turn just over halfway through the almost 9,000-mile trip as he learned about the incident. On Saturday at midnight, the flight reached Dubai airport again.
Auckland Airport authorities posted on Twitter that it is frustrating but important to ensure safety of the passengers. "Auckland Airport has been assessing the damage to our international terminal and unfortunately determined that no international flights can operate today. We know this is extremely frustrating but the safety of passengers is our top priority," they said.
Furthermore, they informed no international departures could take place until 5 am on January 29. The airport authorities added, "No international passenger arrivals at Auckland Airport until 7 am, Sunday 29 January."
The Airport resumed operations on Sunday.
