A Turkish Airlines plane. (Credit: Nicolas Economou/AFP)
BEIRUT — A Turkish Airlines plane that took off for Beirut on Tuesday evening from Dalaman, Turkey, had to make an emergency landing in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus due to a technical "breakdown," Fady el-Hassan, acting Director General of Lebanese Civil Aviation, confirmed to L'Orient-Le Jour Thursday.
"Following an engine failure, the plane expected in Beirut landed in Cyprus," Hassan said. He said the passengers on board the flight should have made it to Beirut by now, but was unable to confirm this. When contacted by L'Orient-Le Jour, Turkish Airlines confirmed on Friday that the passengers returned to Beirut via Istanbul within hours.
A video appearing to be filmed by one of the passengers on board circulated on social media. The authenticity of the video, which shows one of the plane's engines on fire, is not verified.
Return flight cancelled
According to the Turkish airline's website, the flight (TK 7846), scheduled between 9.10 p.m. and 10.30 p.m., was diverted to Ercan airport in North Nicosia. The plane, a Boeing 737-800, took off at 9:14 p.m. and landed at 10:36 p.m..
The return flight (Beirut-Dalaman), scheduled for 11.30 p.m. on Tuesday aboard the same aircraft, was cancelled. "Some of the passengers who were at Beirut International Airport changed their destination and took a plane to Antalya, while others travelled to Dalaman the following day,"el-Hassan explained.
According to Turkish media reports, the Turkish Ministry of Works and Infrastructure said the Boeing, which had 30 passengers and six crew members on board, has been moved for repairs. There were no casualties.
