Corendon flight returns to Brussels after technical issue, passengers criticise lack of communication

A Corendon Airlines flight from Brussels Airport to Hurghada, Egypt, was forced to return to Brussels on Sunday after the crew detected a technical problem shortly after departure.

Flight XR5401, operated by Airbus A320 with Lithuanian registration LY-LGA, departed around three hours behind schedule before turning back while over southern Germany. The aircraft landed safely at Brussels Airport, where emergency services were on standby as a standard precaution for technical returns.

Although the return was uneventful, many of the approximately 180 passengers criticised the airline’s handling of the incident, saying they received little information about the nature of the technical problem or the arrangements after landing. Several passengers also reported hearing unusual noises from one of the engines during the flight, although Corendon has not confirmed the cause of the technical issue.

Passengers were eventually transferred to a hotel near the airport overnight before departing on a replacement aircraft the following evening. Corendon said the decision to return was made in accordance with standard safety procedures, stressing that passenger safety remains its highest priority, but declined to provide further details about the technical malfunction.

UPDATE

A replacement aircraft (Corendon Airlines Boeing 737-800 registered TC-COR) was flown in from Antalya and eventually left Brussels Airport Monday at 18:25 to reach Hurghada at 23:52, 26 and a half hours after schedule, as flight CXI8D.