Passengers on an Astana–Antalya flight faced a multi-hour departure delay on October 9. The situation was reported by Kazakh lawyer Asel Bikenova on her Instagram page, according to infohub.kz.
According to the lawyer, she was heading off on a long-awaited vacation to Turkey on a SCAT Airlines flight. The departure was initially scheduled for 07:20, but was then pushed back first to 09:00, then to 12:30, and later to 15:00. "And it's still not certain we'll even fly out today! We're being told the aircraft is in Moscow, where the airport is closed due to air defense operations," Bikenova wrote.
The woman expressed bewilderment as to why the airline had not arranged a backup aircraft for such cases. "Why should people who paid for their vacation in advance have to sit at the airport for hours in complete uncertainty? We bought a tour package, planned our vacation, counted on a certain departure time. But in reality, we're losing a paid day of our vacation," she said indignantly.
A NUR.KZ correspondent reached out to SCAT Airlines' press service for comment. They confirmed that the Astana–Antalya flight delay was due to waiting for the aircraft to arrive. "During the waiting period, the airline organized passenger services, paying special attention to their needs and comfort before departure. Passengers were provided with hot meals twice. Everyone who expressed a desire to rest at a hotel was given accommodation. Currently, passengers are boarding, and the aircraft is preparing for departure," the airline assured.