Samoa Airways flight OL855 from Apia to Sydney was diverted to Canberra where it had to land due to bad weather at Sydney’s Kingsford-Smith Airport last Saturday.
The airline said the unforeseen diversion took place while customers with confirmed bookings on the return flight (OL856) from Sydney to Apia were being processed through check-in and departure formalities.
Whilst flight OL855 was eventually able to operate from Canberra to Sydney Saturday night, it did so after 11:00pm local time meaning that the Sydney Airport curfew would be a factor.
Despite the Airline’s best efforts for special dispensation to operate out of Sydney back to Apia after the curfew, unfortunately this was not possible and as a result, Samoa Airways’ Boeing 737-800 aircraft and crew had to make an unplanned overnight stopover in Sydney.
As a result, the delay meant that flight OL856 out of Sydney had to be rescheduled along with the Airlines other international flights for the period 6th to 11th January.
Flight OL856 was rescheduled to depart Sydney at 2:00pm today 6th January, in accordance with the availability of aircraft bays, check-in counters and baggage carousels at Sydney Airport.
The Airline has apologised for the inconvenience caused as a result of the disruption which was caused by unsuitable weather conditions and has reminded customers to ensure they have travel insurance coverage for unforeseen situations and emergencies.
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