Confused and impatient passengers strugged to glean information today after an accident forced the closure of Dubai International Airport.
Karl Williams, who was in Dubai on holiday, was booked on a 9.50am Emirates flight to London. “We were told urgently to go to the departure lounge. Waiting there, every hour we were told there was an hour’s delay. Finally we were told that the flight was cancelled.”
“Emirates is not doing anything to accommodate us,” he added.
Another passenger reports “total chaos” at Sharjah airport. “I was on the Virgin flight due to land in Dubai at 7.20am – we were diverted to Sharjah. It was total chaos, with 1,000 people milling round the airport trying to get a taxi.”
Passenger Ify Ibeh was due to fly to Lagos at 6am this morning. “After the incident the airline told us we have to wait for six hours,” she said.
Passengers at the airport were not told the length of the closure and crowded around TV screens to watch news reports of the accident.
“It’s crazy, I can’t get any sense out of anyone,” said Joe Murphy, 73, in transit on the long-haul trip from Australia to the UK. “All I want to know is what’s happening.”
Some flights were cancelled, while others were delayed or transferred to nearby Abu Dhabi and Sharjah airports. Some passengers complained there was no information about their flights.
“First they told me the flight was on, then it was off,” said Marc Latamie, 54, hoping to take a flight to Paris. “I have no idea what is happening.”
The normally packed airport shopping area was deserted as passengers thronged around information and transfer desks, while others left or were bussed out of the airport.
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