Swiss plane stranded in Astana Passenger pays 10,000 francs for onward flight

A Swiss flight from Tokyo to Zurich had to make an unscheduled stopover in Kazakhstan on Saturday. The plane then ended up in the grass.

A Swiss airline plane on its way from Tokyo to Zurich had to make a stopover in Astana, Kazakhstan, on Saturday due to a medical emergency. During a turning maneuver on the runway, the front wheel of the plane got caught in a meadow.

The pilot had to make a 180-degree turn of the aircraft on the runway after landing, as the taxiway was closed at the time, a spokeswoman told the Keystone-SDA news agency on request. The front wheel came off the runway and landed lightly in a meadow.

Aircraft is back on the runway

The aircraft was then brought back onto the runway. The passenger affected by the medical emergency was handed over to medical personnel, the spokeswoman continued. All other passengers are safe and well, it added. The passengers will now be brought to Zurich as quickly as possible. The incident is being investigated. The incident involved a Boeing 777 aircraft.

In the evening, Swiss announced that its sister company Austrian Airlines would provide support following the unscheduled landing in Astana: The Austrian airline was sending an aircraft to the Kazakh capital to transport Swiss passengers to Vienna. The arrival in Vienna is scheduled for 10.15 a.m. Swiss time on Sunday morning.

10,000 Swiss francs for connecting flight

The passengers would then be taken to Zurich or their final destination. This option is the best solution for passengers on the original flight from Tokyo to Zurich, so that they can be transported onwards as quickly as possible. At the same time, it would have the least impact on Swiss's overall flight operations. Passengers and crew will be accommodated in hotels until departure from Astana to Vienna.

However, as "20 Minuten" writes, the Austrian aircraft has less space than the Swiss plane. Therefore, not all stranded passengers could be brought to Vienna.

Many passengers were stranded without a connection. "We were told that it could take up to three days before we were picked up," said the passenger. But because she had to go to Zurich for work, she had now booked a flight on her own. This had cost her 10,000 francs.

Swiss rejects this accusation. "Our flight captain informed all passengers at Astana Airport on Saturday evening that an Austrian Airlines aircraft would be available for the repatriation. We also organized a hotel for the passengers and informed them of the pick-up time for the return flight. We offered this option to all passengers who wanted to travel back on the Austrian Airlines flight," writes spokeswoman Karin Montani.