Flights scheduled to land at Phuket International Airport during the disruption were redirected to the airport in Krabi, in southern Thailand. - PHUKET.AIRPORTTHAI.CO.TH
PHUKET: Seventeen flights in and out of Phuket were disrupted on Wednesday (Oct 8) afternoon after the only runway at its international airport was closed.
The closure was to facilitate the removal of a navy aircraft that had encountered a wheel failure while landing at about 11.15am local time, said the airport in a Facebook post on Oct 8.
The airport said it provided urgent assistance and closed the runway for three hours to allow for the movement of aircraft and inspection of the runway surface for safety.
As a result, seven flights were unable to land at Phuket International Airport, while 10 flights were unable to depart, the airport added.
Flights scheduled to land at Phuket International Airport during the disruption were redirected to the airport in Krabi, in southern Thailand, The Khaosod said.
Singapore Airlines (SIA) Flight SQ727 was scheduled to depart from Phuket airport at 11.40am (12.40pm Singapore time), but information online shows that departure has been delayed to 2.30pm local time.
The flight was originally scheduled to land in Singapore at 2.55pm, but Changi Airport’s flight information website displays the flight’s status as “delayed”.
The Straits Times has contacted SIA to find out if the delay is connected to Phuket’s runway closure.
Phuket airport, in its Facebook post, apologised for any inconvenience caused. It added that to avoid missing their flights, passengers are advised to check flight status directly with their airlines. - The Straits Times/ANN
