The remainder of 500 passengers bound for Moscow are hoping to finally take off from Phuket today after spending an extra two days on the island as their aircraft has experienced some “technical problems”.
Rossiya Flight FV5876 was scheduled to depart Phuket for Moscow on Sunday, but as of today, the plane has yet to take off.
The flight was delayed due to some technical problems with the aircraft, reports Russia’s TASS agency.
The plane in question is a wide-bodied double-decker Boeing 747 (EI-XLJ) with a passenger capacity of approximately 520 passengers. The jumbo jet is now expected to leave Phuket at 12:40pm today.
Some of the passengers—mostly women and children—have already been carried to Moscow by partner airline Rossiya, which itself is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Aeroflot, while others remained in Phuket.
However, it has not been revealed how many people are still waiting for transportation back to their home country.
“A reserve aircraft will be used to carry the remaining passengers. Right now it’s being prepared to take off,” a Rossiya spokesperson told TASS.
No formal releases recognizing the incident could be found on the carrier’s website.
“According to Russian federal aviation rules and our internal company policies, all passengers were warned in advance about the situation and transferred to a hotel where they are provided with drinks and food,” the airline representative added.
Story: The Phuket News
