EasyJet passengers heading to Cyprus from London were left frustrated and tired on Friday night after bad weather diverted their plane to Turkey before it was then forced to re-route to Athens and then finally Paphos, instead of it’s initial destination in Larnaca.
Upon landing in Paphos in the early hours of Saturday morning, all the passengers were then shuttled by bus to Larnaca Airport.
The plane – which had taken off from Gatwick Airport on route to Larnaca Airport with 184 passengers on board – was approaching Cyprus when the pilot turned his course towards south west Turkey due to bad weather over Paphos.
After landing in Dalaman Airport following lengthy discussions with ground control in Turkey, the plane then took off again for Eleftherios Venizelos Airport in Athens before then continuing its original course for Paphos instead of Larnaca.
“The plane landed safely at 4.40am (Saturday morning) and from there, a bus was arranged to transport the passengers to Larnaca Airport,” commented Hermes Airports Media Official Adamos Aspris.
“Those who had been scheduled to fly out of Larnaca for Gatwick on the same plane on Saturday had, likewise, been transferred by the airline by bus from Larnaca Airport to Paphos Airport.”
When asked by reporters why the plane had landed in Paphos instead of Larnaca which resulted in many passengers venting their frustration at easyJet airline officials, Aspris replied, “This was a decision taken by the airline. It was deemed necessary for the plane to land in Paphos.”
Meanwhile, media reports in Cyprus and Greece claim that the Turkish Civil Aviation was initially reluctant to allow the plane to land in Damala “because there were some Cypriot passengers on board”.
The excuse by Turkey, the reports claimed, was because Larnaca Airport “was not recognised as an official international airport by Turkey”.
When the captain informed ground control in Turkey that he would instead turn the plane around and head to Athens, he was allowed clearance to land in Dalaman.
“We have two excellent airports in Cyprus regardless of whether some people like it or not,” commented Aspris when asked about reports that Turkish aviation officials had been reluctant to allow the plane to land because it did not recognise Larnaca airport.
Cyprus weekly
