New Zealand flight turns back after discovering lacks permission to land in China

An Air NZ flight to Shanghai turned back several hours into its journey on Sunday after discovering it did not have permission to land in China, the airline said. Flight NZ289 carrying about 270 passengers left Auckland shortly before midnight on Saturday only to return about 10 a.m. on Sunday (2100 GMT Saturday). It turned around several hours into the flight. “A technicality meant the particular aircraft operating this service did not have Chinese regulatory authority to land in China,” the airline said. China’s foreign ministry did not make any immediate comment when contacted by Reuters. Air NZ apologised to passengers and said a special service would fly them to Shanghai at 11 p.m. on Sunday. “We know customers will be deeply disappointed and frustrated by this situation and we are very sorry for the disruption to their travel plans,” Air New Zealand said.<br/>