A SriLankan Airlines flight travelling from Bangkok to Colombo had returned to Suvarnabhumi Airport soon after takeoff as the aircraft’s cabin had filled with smoke due to a malfunction in the air conditioning system. In a statement, the Airline said today that the aircraft had landed safely at the Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok and that the passengers and crew members were not injured. The Flight UL 891 had departed from Bangkok at 2209 hours (Bangkok time) and the smoke was detected 19 minutes after takeoff. “The operating crew immediately took steps to shut down the air conditioning system and requested urgency to land at Suvarnabhumi Airport. Upon landing safely, the pilot took the decision to disembark all passengers at a remote bay onto the tarmac using passenger disembarking steps which is an industry standard safety practice,” the statement said. It said the aircraft engineers at the Airport had rectified the fault and the aircraft was cleared to fly after a thorough inspection. The Flight had finally departed Bangkok at 0337 hours on Friday with 235 passengers and landed at Bandaranaike International Airport at 0525 hours. “Another 30 passengers were rerouted to the next available flight which arrived in Colombo today at 1100 hours,” it said.
