New Zealand Flight To China With 270 On Board Forced To Turn Back Mid-Air

Flight NZ289 of Air New Zealand carrying about 270 passengers left Auckland shortly before midnight on Saturday only to return about 10 a.m. on Sunday (2100 GMT Saturday)

Updated : February 10, 2019 

Air New Zealand told passengers a special service would fly them to Shanghai on Sunday

Sydney: An Air New Zealand flight to Shanghai turned back several hours into its journey on Sunday after discovering it did not have permission to land in China, the airline said.

Flight NZ289 carrying about 270 passengers left Auckland shortly before midnight on Saturday only to return about 10 a.m. on Sunday (2100 GMT Saturday). It turned around several hours into the flight.

"A technicality meant the particular aircraft operating this service did not have Chinese regulatory authority to land in China," the airline said.