Nearly 4,000 passengers were left stranded after 48 flights were cancelled on Sunday at the Sibu Airport in Malaysia following the skidding accident. The airport has been closed for the day for investigation initiated by the Department of Civil Aviation.
Airport manager Zainuddin Abu Nasir said 28 MASwings flights, 16 AirAsia and four Malaysia Airlines with a combined 3,787 passengers were called off on Sunday.
The authorities ordered the closure after MAS Flight MH2718 skidded upon landing at the airport at 10.17 pm on Saturday after a downpour. The Boeing 737-800 aircraft was carrying 61 passengers and six crew members when it skidded and landed in an awkward position. However, there were no reports of any injury.
The Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd said in a statement on Sunday that the closure is to allow the investigation into the incident and to carry out repair works to the aircraft.
According to the authorities, the flights that were cancelled would have left for or arrived from Johor Baru, Kota Kinabalu, Kuala Lumpur, Bintulu, Miri and Kuching. "The airlines involved have made the decision to cancel their flights," Zainuddin told Bernama.
"We expect the operations at the Sibu Airport to return to normal by 8pm once works to remove the aircraft is completed," he added.
