Passengers on a Virgin Australia flight to Hobart had to make an unexpected U-turn back to the mainland overnight as construction works shut the capital’s runway.
Flight VA1330 took off from Melbourne an hour and a half late at 9:04pm on Monday due to earlier fog-related delays.
In a statement to Pulse, Virgin said the aircraft was expected to arrive in Hobart before the planned runway closure came into effect.
“When the aircraft pushed back from Melbourne Airport, the flight plan showed an arrival time prior to 10pm,” a spokesperson said.
“However, during the flight it became apparent the aircraft would not arrive before the 10pm runway closure.”
“As a result, the decision was made to return to Melbourne.”
A replacement flight was arranged for Tuesday morning, getting passengers to Hobart by 7am.
“We sincerely apologise to all guests who were impacted by this disruption,” the spokesperson said.
One passenger told Pulse the cancellation led to a long night, as hotels in the vicinity of the airport “were booked out”.
“[Our] only option was to shuttle to the city and find accommodation at midnight,” he said, adding he managed to get “three hours sleep” before it was time to head back to the airport.
