SINGAPORE: Thick fog enveloped Senai International Airport in Johor early this morning (20 Nov), disrupting operations and forcing an AirAsia flight to divert to Singapore.
The affected flight, AK5413, was travelling from Kuching, Sarawak, to Johor Bahru.
According to the Oriental Daily, the aircraft, which departed Kuching at 5:46 am, attempted to land twice at Senai but could not do so due to severely reduced visibility.
The flight ultimately rerouted and landed safely at Singapore’s Changi Airport at 7:39 am.
Online reports from netizens corroborated the incident, with several noting the dense fog that blanketed the airport in the early morning hours.
A FlightRadar24 analysis showed that AK5413, originally scheduled to depart at 6 am and land at Senai by 7:20 am, took off slightly ahead of schedule and circled the Johor airspace twice before redirecting.
After refuelling and waiting for conditions to improve, the aircraft departed from Changi Airport at 9:47 am and landed at Senai International Airport at 10:03 am.
The flight eventually landed safely in Johor. AirAsia confirmed the diversion to the press, citing adverse weather conditions as the cause.