GEORGE NEWS - Two flights to George Airport have been diverted today due to bad weather conditions. According to the Air Traffic and Navigation Services (ATNS), an Airlink flight from Cape Town had to return to Cape Town and a FlySafair flight from OR Tambo was diverted to Gqeberha this morning.

A person on the flight from Johannesburg said they were doing the descent at George Airport when they felt the plane ascending again.

“We could already see the ground and cars and then we started to go up again. When we finished ascending, the captain announced we couldn’t land because of something to do with the instruments and the wind blowing from behind us,” the person said.

According to the person they were given the option to either stay in Gqeberha or wait on the plane and take the flight back to Johannesburg. It is unclear what would happen to those who decided to fly back to Johannesburg. Some passengers who got off in Gqeberha rented cars and drove to George.

Head of corporate affairs and communications at ATNS Mphilo Dlamini said, “We are closely monitoring the situation and will provide updates throughout the day as conditions evolve.”

ATNS warned that weather conditions might not allow flights to land, and asked for the public's patience and understanding.

The Airports Company South Africa has been contacted for a comment, and a response is pending.

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