A number of aircraft heading for Tripoli airport had to land in Malta yesterday afternoon due to poor visibility at the Libyan airport because of sandstorms.

The flights landing here included an Alitalia flight from Rome. The flight, on which there were 130 passengers and two infants, left Malta to make another attempt at landing in Tripoli some hours later but returned to Rome when it found that conditions had not changed.

There was a KLM flight from Amsterdam with 79 passengers which returned to Amsterdam in the evening.

There were also a British Airways flight from London Heathrow with 71 passengers, an MK Airlines cargo flight from Ostend in Belgium and a Blue Panorama Afriquean flight from Charles de Gaule airport in Paris with 58 passengers.

The two passenger planes remained in Malta overnight. Different arrangements were made for the passengers through their agents.

No other flights were expected to be diverted to Malta, as the airport closure had been notified to them in time to cancel their departure.