Swiss flies passengers stranded in Astana to Zurich via Vienna
Published: Sunday, Aug 18th 2024, 13:40
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The airline Swiss has flown out 331 passengers stranded after an incident in Kazakhstan. A plane from sister company Austrian Airlines picked them up on Sunday.
The Swiss plane that got stuck in a meadow during a turning maneuver in Astana on Saturday initially remained on the ground. The passengers had to spend the night in hotels in Astana and took off on Sunday on the Austrian plane to Vienna, according to Swiss. From Vienna, a Swiss plane was supposed to take the passengers to Zurich.
A Swiss Boeing 777 on its way from Tokyo to Zurich made a stopover in Astana on Saturday due to a medical emergency. During a turning maneuver on the runway, the front wheel of the aircraft got stuck in a meadow. The plane was eventually towed back onto the runway. No one was injured.
Swiss technicians then traveled to Astana and, in consultation with the manufacturer Boeing and the Kazakh and Swiss authorities, inspected the aircraft for possible damage. If the inspection is successful without any objections, a new crew will transfer the aircraft to Zurich "as soon as possible", Swiss announced.
The breakdown in Astana will affect Swiss' long-haul flight schedule until at least Tuesday. Because no reserve aircraft is available, Swiss has canceled its Sunday flight to and from Los Angeles. In addition, the departure to Bangkok on Sunday has been delayed by several hours and the flight to Sao Paulo on Monday evening has been postponed until Tuesday morning.
The flight to Sao Paulo on Sunday evening will reportedly take place as planned. According to Swiss, further delays or cancellations depend on the return of the Boeing 777 from Astana and its operational capability.
©Keystone/SDA
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