Flight chaos after plane to Dublin damages airport runway lights in fog

Stock photo: PA

Over 35 fights out of Abu Dhabi were cancelled and hundreds delayed yesterday as a Dublin-bound plane damaged runway lights at Emirate's International Airport amid thick fog.

The Etihad flight veered off its line on the southbound runway as it prepared to take off at 3.19am.

According to Travel Mole, the damage to the lights caused a six-hour shutdown, with 35 flights cancelled and 150 delayed by more than an hour.

None of the 208 passengers and crew on the Airbus A330-200 were injured, but there was damage to the tyres.

Ahmad Al Haddabi, chief operating officer at Abu Dhabi Airports Company (Adac), told the national.ae: "The airport resumed normal operations this morning, with expected delays in some flight departures."

Golfers who had been in town for the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship, including Lee Westwood and Luke Donald, took to Twitter to say they hadn't been affected.

Luke last night wrote: "Luckily I left from Dubai. Back in the US now...".

Etihad and local authorities are investigating the incident, but it's thought the fog was the main factor.


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