"WE WERE TREMBLING, FEARING IT WOULD CRASH WHILE FLYING OVER OUR HOUSES" - EYEWITNESS

When the aircraft flew directly over our houses, our fear doubled and tripled

- By SHRINATH PRASANNA JAYASURIYA

A Turkish Airlines flight carrying 212 passengers and crew from Colombo to Istanbul was forced to return to Bandaranaike International Airport around midnight on Tuesday after a technical fault was detected in its landing gear system.

The aircraft circled over the western coast to burn excess fuel before making a safe emergency landing. Following inspections and repairs, the flight resumed its journey to Istanbul last evening. The following is an eyewitness account of the tense incident as experienced by residents who watched the aircraft circle low over their homes

“We became highly suspicious when a large passenger aircraft was flying unusually low and circling several times in the sky. Because of that, we paid close attention. Everyone in our family went up to the upper floor of the house and observed the aircraft. We were all afraid that it would crash. Many people in the village had woken up and were watching the sky. When the aircraft flew directly over our houses, our fear doubled and tripled,” said Dinith Deemantha, a resident of the Chilaw Sangattha area, who witnessed the Turkish Airlines aircraft circling the skies above Chilaw.

Dinith, who works at a private finance institution in Chilaw, said they soon realised that the aircraft had encountered a technical fault. “My sister, Sandali, called the Katunayake International Airport and informed them. By then, they told us that steps were already being taken to land the aircraft safely at Katunayake. The officer who answered the call also said that the aircraft's landing gear was not functioning properly.