THY passengers stranded for 3 days due to engine failure

A group including Prof. Dr. Nizamettin Toprak, Head of the Cardiology Department at Dicle University Faculty of Medicine in Diyarbakır, along with his wife and relatives, traveled to Thailand via Istanbul on a Turkish Airlines flight on November 26. 

Following a 6-day trip to Thailand, the flight they boarded on December 1 to return turned into a nightmare. Due to an alleged engine failure on flight TK-173, it is claimed that business class passengers, including foreign nationals, were separated from the regular economy passengers. 

NO INFORMATION FROM THY

Those on the regular flight were kept on the plane for 2 hours and then left to suffer for 7 hours at Phuket International Airport. Prof. Dr. Nizamettin Toprak, one of the victims among the group placed in various hotels in the city, stated that they have received no information from THY officials for 3 days.

“WE WERE KEPT INSIDE THE AIRPORT FOR 7 HOURS”

Expressing his grievances, Toprak said, “My wife, myself, and two other couples traveled from Diyarbakır to Phuket, Thailand, on November 26 via a Prontotour package on Turkish Airlines (THY) flight TK-173, with a connection in Istanbul.

There were approximately 280 people on the plane. We finished our 6-day vacation in Phuket. On our way back, our flight was scheduled to depart on Saturday at 22:45. However, we have been stranded here for 3 days due to an engine failure. We have not spoken to any Turkish Airlines official so far, and we have not received any notification messages.

The day of our departure was already a disaster. We were boarded onto the 22:45 flight at 22:00. We were kept on the plane for more than 2 hours. Finally, they told us the plane had a malfunction and asked us to disembark. This time, we were kept inside the airport for 7 hours,” he said.

“WE CHANGED 2 HOTELS”

Stating that THY first placed them in a comfortable hotel and then moved them to a lower-quality one because it was 'too expensive,' Toprak said, “Besides this, what bothered the passengers the most was that they separated the business class passengers, especially the foreigners, from us. They sent them to a hotel within half an hour, but we stayed at the airport for 7 hours.

They probably managed to send them off somehow. We have been waiting for 3 days. We changed 2 hotels. Because the first night's hotel was a bit expensive, they sent us to an ordinary hotel afterward. The hotels are truly very bad. I would never stay in such a hotel even with my own money,” he stated.

“I HAVE DOZENS OF PATIENTS”

Saying that not only they but also their patients are suffering, Toprak added, “I was supposed to be at work on Monday morning. My 5-day leave turned into 9 days. I have dozens of patients calling me. In this situation, my patients' examinations have been delayed. These patients of mine come from Bitlis, Hakkari, and Şanlıurfa. My patients have also been victimized along with me.

My wife is also a professor. She has classes as well. In this situation, many patients and students have been victimized along with us.

If there is a malfunction, an expert should resolve the issue. But for a 3-day aircraft breakdown, a new plane should have been sent by now. International rules dictate this. So, I think there is a management problem,” he said.

“NO ONE EVEN CALLED US”

“We researched it ourselves, and there are no other flights from Phuket to Turkey,” Toprak said, adding:

'Even though Turkish Airlines has so many resources, we didn't even receive a message. Let alone speaking to us in person, not a single person from THY even called us. We are handling many things here on our own. For example, a bus was supposed to come and pick us up at 7:30 today. It is almost 8 o'clock now. But there is no sign of anyone.”