As the search for Malaysia Airlines flight 370 continues to unfold, A Malaysia Airlines flight to South Korea had to make an emergency landing in Hong Kong Monday after a main electrical generator failed.
Making its way from Kuala Lumpur to Seoul, the Airbus A330-300
landed without incident in Hong Kong around 3 a.m., according to The Associated Press.
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The company said the plane had to make an unplanned landing due to "an inoperative aircraft generator, which supplies normal electrical power." Electrical power was not lost, however, as the plane's auxiliary power unit continued to function normally.
Flight MH066 was carrying 271 passengers, who were all placed on flights with other airlines to complete their journey. The total time from identifying the failed generator to alerting the Hong Kong airport to landing was approximately 30 minutes.
The incident comes just weeks after Malaysia Airlines flight 370 disappeared over Southeast Asia, casting the company and Malaysian government into the international spotlight. Three weeks into the search, multiple governments, bureaus, and private outfits continued to garner headlines with new theories and evidence gleaned from satellite photos.
On Monday,
Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak announced that they had likely found the plane, telling the press Flight 370 "ended" its journey in the Southern Indian Ocean, off the Australian coast.
"This is a remote location, far from any possible landing sites," Razak said at the news conference. "It is therefore with deep sadness and regret that I must inform you that, according to this new data, flight MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean."
According to the Malaysian Prime Minister, a subsequent news conference would be held on Tuesday, during which more details of the crash site would be released.
Prior to his announcement, Malaysia Airlines had already spoken to the families of those who were on flight 370 and informed them of the development, Razak added.
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