AN AirAsia passenger has spoken about the ordeal of being stranded for over 27 hours at Incheon International Airport in South Korea on Saturday.

Nuruljannah Musatapa, 26, who spent a week-long vacation in the country, said the flight home was scheduled to take off at 6.55am on Saturday but was delayed for almost two hours due to technical issues.

“All passengers were asked to leave the aircraft and wait at the departure gate. We were informed that they provided us with hotel accommodation near the airport and that they would update the new flight schedule.

“At around 9.30pm we were asked to return to the airport for check-in once again and boarded the same flight at 1.30am,” she said, adding that she spent the holidays with her husband, Ahmad Zuriyad Ahmad Zukiman, and their seven-month-old infant.

Their problem did not end there because the flight was grounded for another eight hours, she said, adding that the crew told them that it was due to technical issues and that thick snow covered the runway.

“At this point, some had already left the plane because they could not wait, but they told us if we left, we could not board the same flight and had to buy new tickets. So, we waited until the plane could take off,” she added.

However, she said AirAsia provided passengers with free food and drinks and allowed them to submit insurance claims for the delay.

Another passenger, Nurul Nadia Abd Azizi, 34, a teacher from Tanah Merah, Kelantan, who was also on vacation with her family, shared the same experience.

“It was exhausting, and my children became restless after being on the plane for too long. For eight hours, there was nothing much to do while waiting for the plane to take off,” she said, adding that AirAsia treated them well the whole time.

“Alhamdulillah, everything is OK, and we landed safely at 4pm on Sunday,” she added. – Bernama, December 27, 2023