Turkish Airlines: Istanbul-Tunis flight diverted to Enfidha due to a storm
A Turkish Airlines flight departing from Istanbul for Tunis-Carthage was forced to divert to Enfidha-Hammamet Airport.
The Airbus A321 (registration TC-JTN) had taken off normally from Istanbul last Thursday, with a scheduled arrival at Tunis-Carthage around 4:15 PM. However, weather conditions deteriorated sharply as the aircraft approached the Tunisian capital. The National Institute of Meteorology had actually forecast the event, warning of potentially intense thunderstorms and strong wind gusts in the region, with the Greater Tunis area among the most exposed zones.
Faced with turbulence and difficulty stabilizing the aircraft, the crew reportedly made multiple approach attempts, up to three, according to eyewitness accounts, though this figure has not been officially confirmed by the airline or Tunisian airport authorities. Nevertheless, flight tracking data confirms that the flight was indeed diverted to Enfidha-Hammamet Airport, where it eventually landed safely around 4:55 PM.
Scenes of panic filmed in the cabin
Several passengers recorded the shaking from their seats, and some of these videos circulated quickly on social media. They show visibly terrified travelers gripping their armrests while the aircraft was repeatedly buffeted.
A Russian passenger, sharing her experience after landing, described a particularly harrowing phase of the flight, mentioning a sensation of falling during one of the aborted approaches. According to her account, the flight itself had proceeded smoothly, and the situation only became frightening during the descent. Once the aircraft had landed at Enfidha, the sense of relief prompted spontaneous applause in the cabin, a common reaction among passengers following a turbulent flight.
No serious injuries, but a long detour
Despite the scare, the landing at Enfidha-Hammamet, located about a hundred kilometers south of Tunis, took place without incident or reported serious injuries. However, passengers had to wait several hours on the ground before resuming their journey to their original destination; according to flight tracking data, the aircraft did not take off from Enfidha for Tunis until 10:09 PM, more than five hours after its forced landing.