8-hour flightmare after Boeing 737 Max bound for Iceland was diverted to Scotland when strong winds stopped it landing
The Neos flight twice failed to land during high winds in Iceland and was diverted to Glasgow, about 800 miles away from its intended destination.
admin
Fabrizio Gandolfo/SOPA/Getty Images
- A flight from the Canary Islands to Iceland ended up being diverted to Scotland.
- Strong winds in Iceland prevented the Boeing 737 Max from landing on two attempts on Thursday.
- The Neos flight was then diverted 800 miles away to Glasgow, Scotland.
A flight bound for Iceland ended up in Scotland instead after strong winds stopped it from landing on Thursday.
The Neos Boeing 737 Max took off from Tenerife in the Canary Islands heading for Akureyri in northern Iceland.
The roughly 2,500 mile journey typically takes about five hours, but Flight NO4925 was airborne for some eight hours.
After reaching Akureyri, the plane flew as low as 700 feet before aborting its landing attempt, data from Flightradar24 shows.
It then headed southwest to the capital Reykjavik, but again was unable to land.
The flight then diverted to Glasgow, more than 800 miles away from the intended destination.
Neos flight #NO4925 from Tenerife to Akureyri in Iceland has aborted 2 landing attempts in Iceland and is diverting to the UK.
Iceland has been experiencing really strong winds on Thursday.
This 737 MAX has now been airborne for more than 7h 37 min. pic.twitter.com/izr3zfp0FB— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) February 6, 2025
Neos did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
The airline, founded in 2021, is owned by Italy's Alpitour and based at Milan Malpensa Airport.
Thursday's incident came as the Icelandic Met Office issued red weather warnings for much of the country. It said dozens of weather stations recorded wind gusts of more than 90 miles per hour, and average wind speeds in excess of 60 miles per hour.
It's not the first time that strong winds have caused havoc for European airlines this year.
Red weather warnings in the UK and Ireland during Storm Éowyn disrupted journeys for hundreds of passengers.
One Ryanair flight from London to Edinburgh twice failed to land in the Scottish capital. It then nearly diverted to Cologne in Germany, before changing course back to London.
Another Ryanair flight, from Barcelona to Dublin, made two failed landing attempts before diverting to London Stansted Airport — some 300 miles away.
