Hundreds of passengers on Tus Airways' flight U8464, which was scheduled to leave Ben Gurion Airport on Thursday morning for Prague, found themselves in the terminal in Berlin, without knowing what would become of their journey.
The flight was supposed to take off at 11:00 a.m., but it only departed at 12:15 p.m. It was then scheduled to land in Prague at 3:00 p.m. However, due to heavy fog and extreme weather conditions, the plane landed in Berlin at 4:05 p.m.
Kobi, who was among the flight's passengers, recounted to Mako, "From that moment, we sat on the plane for three hours, and they didn't let us off, hoping we'd be able to take off again. They didn't give us food or water, and for a long time, we didn't know what was happening. And that's how we found ourselves sitting on the plane for over eight hours."
The airline's official announcement to passengers stated: "Due to extreme weather conditions at the airport in Prague, which do not allow for a safe landing, we have to land in Berlin as an alternative destination. The airline's teams are examining operational alternatives that would allow the flight to continue to Prague or an alternative solution as soon as possible."
In the end, the passengers disembarked and were taken to the terminal in Berlin. A few hours later, the airline announced that the passengers would be transported from Berlin to Prague by bus, a journey of approximately four hours.
The announcement added: "We are making efforts to ensure your arrival in Prague comfortably and safely, and we apologize for the inconvenience due to circumstances that are out of our control."