Syrians devastated at missing Assad downfall celebrations after flights to Aleppo cancelled

Heavy fog ruins plans of travellers from across Europe to join family and friends for anniversary

Syrians unable to land in Aleppo are taken to hotels on airline buses. Lizzie Porter / The National

Hundreds of Syrians hoping to return to their home country from Europe and Turkey to mark a year since the fall of the Assad regime were devastated after flight cancellations left them stranded.

Heavy fog at Aleppo International Airport prevented at least three planes from Turkey landing in the northern Syrian hub, as festivities were held across the country to mark the December 8 anniversary of former president Bashar Al Assad’s fall from power.

A flight operated by Ajet, the low-cost wing of Turkish flag carrier Turkish Airlines, circled Aleppo airport on Sunday before being diverted to the south-eastern Turkish city of Gaziantep. It sat on the tarmac for three hours before returning to Istanbul. Ground staff and airline crew said poor visibility meant landing in Aleppo was impossible.

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Syrians wait at Istanbul Airport after their flights were cancelled. Lizzie Porter / The National

On Monday morning, Turkish Airlines and Ajet cancelled more flights from Istanbul to Aleppo due to poor weather. That left passengers in limbo in Turkey for a second day in a row, as their chances of reaching Syria to mark the anniversary faded.

“I feel so distressed by missing this day,” Mohammed Al Ahmad, who has lived in Turkey for the past 13 years, told The National as he left Istanbul airport on Monday. “I’d been planning for two months to go to Syria on December 7, to celebrate the December 8 anniversary there.”

Mr Al Ahmad, 31, was unable to attend either the festivities organised by Syrians in Istanbul or those in his home country. “We still don't know if we'll be able to come back tomorrow, maybe they'll postpone us again until the day after that,” he added.

Images of people gathering in Aleppo’s main public square and around its ancient citadel circulated on social media, worsening the feeling of absence for Syrians stuck abroad due to the poor weather.

Passengers had heated conversations with Turkish cabin crew and ground staff, demanding to know why the flights had been diverted and cancelled. Some passengers translated announcements in Turkish and English to Arabic as confusion increased.

Tensions were high after Syrians were diverted back to Istanbul because of heavy fog. Lizzie Porter / The National

Ajet's media relations department told The National that the plane attempted to land at Aleppo but diverted to Gaziantep to refuel after the weather made a safe landing impossible. The pilot then made a second attempt to reach the destination, but visibility over Aleppo airport was “below operational limits”, forcing the return to Istanbul.

Turkish Airlines referred The National to explanations given by ground crew over heavy fog causing the flight cancellations. Some passengers had been travelling since Saturday on connecting flights from European cities to see friends and family in their homeland. They waved passports from countries including Germany, Belgium and Norway – a reminder of how widely Syrians were scattered during nearly 14 years of civil war.

“We came specifically to celebrate this occasion, this wonderful anniversary, but luck was against us,” said Khaldoun Jouna, 67, a used car salesman who flew from the Netherlands. “We changed the ticket again and hopefully we will go to Damascus tomorrow, but we’ve missed the [celebration of] liberation."

Crowds gather at Umayyad Square in Damascus to celebrate the anniversary of the downfall of Bashar Al Assad. AP

The Turkish carriers provided passengers with overnight hotel accommodation and free flights. But for many Syrians who missed the chance to celebrate with friends and family, that was insufficient. Some questioned why other airlines had been able to land in Aleppo while their flights were diverted and cancelled.

“We are upset. We had planned to go and celebrate with our relatives,” Ibrahim Salibi, who runs a dental clinic in Istanbul. Friends and family waiting to greet him at Aleppo airport were forced to go back home, he added.

“They were waiting for us,” he said. “More than once they came to the airport and went back home.”

AJet said in a statement that flight safety protocols "may vary between airlines and weather conditions can change at any time" and the decision to divert Sunday's flight was "taken solely to ensure the safety of the flight".

Amman-based Royal Jordanian and Qatar Airways also fly to Aleppo airport. The hub reopened this year after being closed during the battles late last year that led to rebels toppling the Assad regime.

According to data from Flightradar24, an air traffic monitoring site, Royal Jordanian and Qatari flights were able to land on Sunday, but the Jordanian carrier cancelled a flight scheduled to land on Monday morning. Qatar Airways’s flight tracker said no information could be found on the Doha-Aleppo route.

Aleppo's airport dates back to the French Mandate period in Syria. The current terminal was inaugurated in 1999, during Hafez Al Assad's rule. After being closed during major fighting in Aleppo, several airlines resumed flights from the airport in 2020 to regional destinations including Beirut, Tehran and Erbil.

Before Bashar Al Assad’s fall, Israeli air strikes it the airport and the surrounding area several times due to the significant presence of militants from Assad-aligned, Iran-backed groups.