Emirates plane forced to turn back after 13-hour flight with passengers

Posted by Olerato Ramafsi on 1 February 2023

An Emirates flight from Dubai to New Zealand was forced to turn back halfway through its 14 200km flight due to major flooding and heavy rains.

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The incident occurred on Friday, 27 January 2023. According to data from Cirium, Flight EK448 departed on schedule at around 10:20 on Friday morning only to be forced to turn back due to heavy flooding without landing at its intended destination.

The plane landed back in Dubai shortly after midnight leaving passengers confused and frustrated.

A spokesperson for Emirates told Insider: ‘We regret the inconvenience caused by this incident to our customers, Emirates will continue to monitor the situation in Auckland and issue updates where applicable.’

Passengers aboard an American Airlines flight also endured a similar occurrence on the day after their 10-hour flight from Dallas Fort Worth airport to Auckland had to head back due to the floods and major rainfall, according to reports from Paddle Your Own Kanoo.

The weather also seriously disrupted local travel in Auckland with more than 2000 people stranded overnight within terminals due to the flooding.

In a statement, Auckland airport chief executive Carrie Hurihanganui said: ‘This has been a significant event that has put our city into a state of emergency. But the delay to reopening is necessary to ensure travellers’ safety.’

Picture: Getaway Gallery

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