KLM flight wanders aimlessly all over India, pilots unware of new airport

A KLM flight from Amsterdam ended up all over the country of India because its flight crew was apparently unaware of a new airport opening, and an old one closing. The Times of India is reporting that the SNAFU occurred a mere hours after the new Hyderabad airport was opened, and the old one closed. The flight crew of the KLM flight knew nothing about the changeover and was a little confused when they were denied landing at the old airport. When directed to the new airport, named Shamshabad, one pilot asked ATC, "Shamshabad? What's that?".

The flight ended up all over India trying to divert to Dehli before finally re-diverting to Mumbai for landing. The Times cites "an anonymous source as saying the Dutch airline's pilot had been reluctant to land in Shamshabad because its headquarters in Amsterdam had not received a notice about the closure of the old and the opening of the new facility." The new Shamshabad airport in Hyderabad just opened on Saturday. Here's a thought, check local NOTAMs.

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