KAMPALA, UGANDA — A Turkish Airlines flight bound for Istanbul made an emergency return to Entebbe International Airport on Sunday morning. The Airbus A330-300 (A333), carrying 259 passengers and crew, circled the airspace near Entebbe for approximately three hours before landing. This procedure was necessary to reduce the aircraft’s fuel load to a safe landing weight.
The Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) confirmed that flight TK612, which departed Entebbe International Airport at approximately 7:14 am on Sunday, January 26, 2025, encountered a situation that necessitated the return.
As a precautionary measure, the decision was made to bring the aircraft back to Entebbe. The A333 successfully landed at 10:50 am after completing the fuel-dumping procedure over the airspace north of Kampala.
“The precautionary measures taken are standard safety procedures in the aviation industry,” CAA said in a statement.
“All the passengers and crew were safely disembarked.”
The specific reason for the emergency return was not immediately disclosed. According to Vianney Luggya, head of corporate affairs and communication at the CAA, the airline reported encountering unspecified “technical problems.”
An investigation is underway by the CAA to determine the exact cause of the incident.
An “emergency holding pattern” is a designated flight path used to temporarily keep an aircraft aloft after takeoff. This procedure serves several purposes, primarily to allow the flight crew and air traffic control time to assess a reported issue and decide on the appropriate course of action.
It can also be used to facilitate fuel burn or dumping, reducing the aircraft’s weight for a safer landing back at the departure airport.
