The Bangladesh Biman aircraft carrying Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has taken off from Turkmenistan after being forced to make an emergency landing in an international airport in Turkmenistan’s capital Ashgabat.
After completing repairs, the prime minister’s flight finally took off for Budapest at 6:37 pm (local time) said Biman in a statement on Sunday night.
According to the statement, the Boeing 777-300 ER aircraft (Ranga Provat) will reach Budapest at 11pm (local time).
The plane was carrying also a high-level delegation comprising of LGRD Minister Khandker Mosharraf Hossain and Water Resources Minister Anisul Islam Mahmud.
The prime minister was on her way to Hungary to attend the inaugural ceremony of the Budapest Water Summit 2016 slated for Monday.
The flight had taken off at 9:14am on Sunday morning.
Shakil Meraj, spokesperson for Biman Bangladesh confirmed the news.
Meraj told the Dhaka Tribune that the Boeing 777 pilots had to make the emergency landing due to some mid-air technical complications.
Asghabat International Airport in Turkmenistan Twitter
Meraj said: “We diverted a London-bound flight to Ashgabat as soon as we received the news of the Prime Minister’s emergency landing. The Boeing 777-300 ER reached Turkmenistan at 4:10 pm. It will carry the PM and her entourage to Budapest. From there, the flight will revert to its original destination London.
“Maintenance work on the plane is going on as we speak. We hope to get back on course quickly,” he added.
Hasina is a member of the UN High-Level Panel on Water.
The summit aims to chalk out the future course of action to achieve water and sanitation related SDG (Sustainable Development Goal) of the UN.
It will also reflect on the progress made so far on water-related issues in the Paris climate agreement.
Source: Dhaka Tribune
