Runway drama for Meghan and Harry as their jet aborts landing
THE Duke and Duchess of Sussex were caught up in a flight drama yesterday when their plane aborted its landing because there was another aircraft on the runway.
The Qantas Boeing 737 flying the couple from Tonga to Australia had descended to an altitude of 125ft before pulling up from the runway seconds before it was due to land.
The aircraft touched down in Sydney eight minutes later after circling the city for a second time.
Passengers clapped when the plane landed and Harry, who flew Apache helicopters in Afghanistan, was seen nodding approval at co-pilot Ann Cole’s skills.
Meghan, 37, who is around 13 weeks pregnant, appeared relaxed after the drama, chatting to journalists before going to the couple’s hotel to change for an evening reception.
She appeared later at an Australian Geographic Society awards ceremony in a stunning white tulle gown by Oscar de la Renta featuring black laser-cut birds.
The dress is from the designer’s preautumn collection. Shoppers are advised to contact a personal shopper if they are interested in the item but a tulle gown from Oscar de la Renta would typically cost as much as £10,000.
Prince Harry, 34, presented the award for Young Adventurer of the Year to Jade Hameister, 17, who has journeyed to both the North and South poles and crossed Greenland.
Meghan, meanwhile, presented the award for Young Conservationist of the Year to Sophia Skarparis, 15, who has been campaigning to ban plastic bags in New South Wales.
The duke also accepted an award on behalf of the Queen for her efforts to highlight the plight of the world’s forests.
The couple arrived at the ceremony late after their airport drama, which unfolded when flight captain Nigel Rosser announced the decision to abort the landing at the last minute.
He said: ‘There was an aircraft on the runway that was a little bit slow to roll and unfortunately hadn’t cleared the runway. We were too close so the decision was made to abort the landing. It was a missed approach.’
In his speech at the awards ceremony, Harry praised his father, Prince Charles, whose work to highlight environmental issues and global warming dates back to the 1970s.
The duke and duchess were given a toy wombat and numbat – a small long-tailed marsupial – for their unborn baby.
Officials in Tonga had an entire area of rainforest sprayed for mosquitos over fears that the pregnant duchess could contract the Zika virus.