Brussels Airlines flight to Luanda was forced to make diversions after Angolan airspace was closed off, without advance notice.
Brussels Airlines flight SN359 from Brussels departed as scheduled. The Airbus A330 was on its descent to Luanda Airport when it was unexpectedly informed that Angolan airspace was closed due to the arrival of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on 17 October.
The Brussels Airlines Airbus A330-300, with registration OO-SFE on a triangle flight from Brussels to Luanda and Kinshasa, thus didn’t land in Luanda and flew to Kinshasa, after holding for half an hour.
As reported by Aviation24.be, Brussels Airlines spokeswoman Kim Daenen said:
“Following the closure of Luanda airspace, passengers on flight SN359 on 17 October were unfortunately forced to return to Brussels. Due to the closure of Luanda airport, our flight remained in a holding pattern for about half an hour. The captain then decided to head for Kinshasa, the second destination of this triangular flight, for fuel reasons.”
All passengers bound to Luanda had to fly back to Brussels and were re-accommodated on a flight the next day. They arrived in Luanda twenty-five and a half hours after their initial schedule.