Ternate, Maluku Utara - Four commercial flights bound for Sultan Babullah Airport in Ternate, Maluku Utara, were forced to divert on Sunday due to heavy rain and strong winds that lashed the region from morning until night.

"It's true that four flights to Ternate couldn't land at Sultan Babullah Airport due to the bad weather," said Irawan Ijom, Airport Manager of Lion Air, to ANTARA on Sunday.

He detailed that the four airlines affected were two Wings Air flights from Manado to Ternate, one Wings Air flight from Ambon to Ternate, and a Super Air Jet A320-232 from Makassar to Ternate that departed at 11:10 WITA.

The Wings Air flight from Ambon to Ternate took off at 11:35 WIT, while the two Wings Air ATR 72-600 flights from Manado to Ternate departed at 10:40 WIT and 12:30 WIT, respectively.

Irawan stated that passengers bound for Ternate on these four airlines from Makassar, Ambon, and Manado would be rescheduled for Monday, December 16, 2024.

"The flights will resume tomorrow, Monday, while we wait for the weather conditions to improve," said Irawan.

The delay caused a number of passengers with destinations in various cities to wait longer at the Sultan Babullah Ternate departure terminal.

Meanwhile, a Wings Air passenger bound for Manado-Ternate, Farizal, told ANTARA that the Wings Air ATR 72-600 flight he was on, which departed from Manado to Ternate at 12:30, was unable to land at Sultan Babullah Airport and returned to Sam Ratulangi Airport in Manado.

"We had already taken off from Manado, but when we were about to land at Sultan Babullah Airport, the plane we were on couldn't land and returned to Sam Ratulangi Airport in Manado," said Farizal.

As a result, Farizal, along with hundreds of other passengers heading to Ternate, had to stay overnight at Sam Ratulangi Airport and would be rescheduled to depart for Ternate at 4:00 AM WIT.