Flight To Greece Returns To Zurich After 32-Hour Trip Due To Bad Weather

NDTV

2 days ago

A flight from Switzerland to Greece had to return to its point of departure after 32 hours in the air due to bad weather. According to the New York Post, the incident took place on May 24, when Condor flight DE1234 was embarking on what was supposed to be a routine flight from Zurich to Heraklion in Crete, Greece. The flight was already running 30 minutes late, but initially appeared to be going swimmingly. After two hours, it began its initial descent to the idyllic Greek isle.
However, the aircraft's landing was hampered by powerful winds, which forced it to circle around for a prolonged period. Then, the pilot decided to divert to Athens and refuel. The plane touched down at the Greek capital three hours after it originally departed Zurich, per the Post.
Around two and a half hours later, the pilot made a second attempt to land the plane in Heraklion. However, due to severe weather conditions, the plane circled again before landing at Kos, a nearby Greek island, to refuel.
After another failed attempt, the aircraft was once again running low on fuel, and the flight was diverted to Thessaloniki, the second largest city in Greece. The crew felt that this was a good place for the passengers and flight attendants to spend the night. They reportedly touched down after a whopping 11 hours after they'd initially left Zurich.
The next day, the crew decided to make one last attempt to get to Crete, but found themselves in a holding pattern yet again due to wind. Again, they were forced to divert to Athens, whereupon the crew decided to call it quits and fly back to Zurich. The plane returned to its point of departure 32 hours later.
In a statement, the airline said that "due to extreme weather conditions and strong winds, takeoffs and landings at Heraklion Airport were only possible to a limited extent."
According to the Post, the plane had landed a total of five different times. To make matters worse, passengers were only given a glass of water and nothing else during the whole flight. Moreover, upon arriving at Thessaloniki, they were forced to pay for their hotel room, although they are entitled to reimbursement under European aviation guidelines.