BELGRADE, Serbia – Belgrade airport has reopened after an Egyptair jet burst tires and blocked the only runway.
Airport authorities said numerous flights had to be diverted and thousands of passengers were stranded after the Boeing 737-800 landed at 4:11 a.m. local time (0211 GMT). Flights resumed at 11:20 a.m.
Photos from the scene show two burst tires below the right wing and possible undercarriage damage.
TangoSix.rs, a specialist aircraft portal, said it was evident that the plane landed hard on its right side and that the tires burst after abrupt braking.
It took seven hours for technicians to remove the jet from the tarmac.
During the closure, most flights were diverted to the central Serbian town of Nis, or to Budapest in Hungary.
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