Emirates Dubai-San Francisco passengers hit by lengthy delay after medical emergency

Sunday’s Emirates flight EK225 to San Francisco returned to Dubai this morning after a medical emergency forced the plane to divert to Moscow.

An Emirates spokesperson said the A380 returned to Dubai “in order to comply with legalities of crew maximum working hours”.

It was scheduled to re-depart at 5:00am this morning.

“Passengers will be offered lounge accommodation, or alternatively hotel accommodation should they wish to change to a later flight within 24 hours,” the spokesperson said.

“Emirates apologises for the inconvenience. The health and safety of our crew and passengers is of paramount importance.”

The @A380fanclub Twitter account first drew attention to the diversion, noting a similar incident earlier this year had resulted in lengthy delays for passengers.

In an article last year, Business Traveller Middle East reported that a single diversion can cost an airline from $200,000 but the amount may be significantly higher factoring in hotel rooms and other costs.

At the time Emirates had diverted 100 flights in the previous two years costing it more than $12m.