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Nok Air Suspends Flights After Plane Slid off Runway

On Saturday night, a Nok Air Boeing 737-800 slid off the runway while landing at Chiang Rai’s Mae Fah Luang International Airport amid heavy rain.

No injuries were reported, but the airport was closed until Wednesday, officials said.

The airline issued a statement on Saturday, saying flight DD108 had departed from Don Mueang at 08:03 and arrived at Chiang Rai’s Mae Fah Luang airport at 09:06 p.m. The plane carried 164 passengers and six crew members on board.

However, the aircraft had landing problems due to heavy rain and left the runway.

The pilots managed to bring the aircraft to a safe stop and none of the passengers or crew members were injured. All were safely transferred to the passenger building.

In the meantime, the airline has decided to cancel all flights to Chiang Rai. On Sunday, the Mae Fah Luang airport announced that the runway would be closed between 6:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. due to the incident.

Following the announcement, the airport extended the closure through Wednesday, hoping to complete an investigation into the incident and clear the runway area.

An airport official said passengers on flight DD108 could receive their luggage at the domestic arrivals area or contact staff.

Thai Smile, Thai Air Asia and Thai Vietjet airlines announced that their passengers would be transported by bus from Mae Fah Luang airport to Chiang Mai airport, where they can take flights to other destinations.

Nok Air said it had taken care of its passengers, but some passengers posted comments on Facebook, saying they would not have received refreshments as reported.

Many others expressed their anger, saying the airline had not helped passengers on the plane or others with booking flights, and others complained about the 1318 call center as no one was answering.

Users also criticized Nok Air for not serving passengers with outbound flights as other airlines did by transferring passengers by buses to Chiang Mai airport.