China Eastern flight diverted to Dhaka twice after failing to land in Kathmandu

A China Eastern Airlines flight was diverted to Dhaka twice on Saturday after failing to land at Kathmandu airport due to severe weather.

Flight MU-9617, carrying 116 passengers and crew, was travelling from Kunming, China, to Kathmandu when it encountered adverse weather conditions after entering Nepali airspace.

After circling for some time, the pilot was instructed to divert the flight to Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka as it was not safe to land in Kathmandu.

The aircraft landed in Dhaka at around 5:15pm. After refuelling, it departed for Kathmandu again when weather conditions appeared to improve.

However, the flight again encountered severe weather over Kathmandu and was unable to land. It returned to Dhaka for a second time and landed at around 11:30pm.

The passengers and crew have been provided temporary accommodation at a hotel in Dhaka through a joint arrangement by the airport authorities and China Eastern.

The flight has yet to depart for Kathmandu and will resume its journey once weather conditions improve.

sks