An India-bound flight of Malaysia Airlines was forced to turn around due to an autopilot defect, landing safely in Kuala Lumpur on Sunday, said the carrier already suffering from twin tragedies this year.
Flight MH198 from Kuala Lumpur to Hyderabad departed at 10:20 p.m. Saturday, but the Boeing 737-800 turned back due to an autopilot defect and landed safely at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport early Sunday, it said in a statement.
The flight spent four hours circling to burn fuel in the air, Agence France-Presse reported.
"The defect did not have any impact on the safety of the aircraft or passengers. However, as a precautionary measure, the operating captain decided to turn back," the national flag carrier said in a statement, refuting earlier reports that the plane was forced to make an emergency landing due to "burning fuel."
Upon its return, passengers and crew disembarked safely and were given accommodations at nearby hotels, the airline said, adding that the flight was rescheduled to operate as MH198D and depart Kuala Lumpur at 12 p.m. Sunday.
Although the airline said it regretted the disruption caused to its guests' travel plans, it reiterated that the safety of its passengers was its top priority, Press Trust of India reported.
Malaysia Airlines has had a solid record until this year, when it lost two Boeing 777-200s, according to AFP.
Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 with 239 people aboard mysteriously lost contact on March 8. The plane is believed to have veered off course and crashed in the southern Indian Ocean, but no trace of any wreckage has been found.
In July, Flight MH17 was shot down by a missile over conflict-torn eastern Ukraine, killing all 289 people aboard. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu blamed Ukraine for the crash last week. "The catastrophe happened in the air space belonging to Ukraine, which bears full responsibility for what happened," he was quoted as saying by Interfax news agency.
