Bad Weather Diverts Wings Air Flight to Labuan Bajo
Wings Air diverted its Kupang–Bajawa flight to Labuan Bajo after rain and lightning disrupted landing conditions at Soa Airport. The aircraft later returned to Kupang.
Editor: Mursyid Sonsang
· 2 min read
Labuan Bajo — A Wings Air flight from Kupang to Bajawa was diverted to Komodo International Airport in Labuan Bajo on Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, after heavy rain and lightning made conditions at Soa Airport unsafe for landing.
Flight IW 1927 landed at Komodo International Airport at 4 p.m. WITA (UTC+8), according to Marwa, a spokesperson for the airport. The aircraft did not continue to Bajawa. After remaining at the airport for nearly two hours, it returned to Kupang, and the Kupang–Bajawa service was canceled.
Why it matters to travelers in eastern Indonesia
The incident shows how weather at a destination airport can disrupt a regional flight even after the aircraft has departed. For passengers traveling between Kupang and Bajawa, the diversion meant that Labuan Bajo was used only as a temporary landing point; it did not become the flight’s final destination.
Soa Airport serves Bajawa in Ngada Regency, while Komodo International Airport serves Labuan Bajo in West Manggarai. The route’s cancellation means passengers booked on the Kupang–Bajawa service did not reach Bajawa on that flight. The report does not state what arrangements Wings Air made for affected passengers or when the route would resume.
The report attributed the disruption to rain accompanied by lightning in the Bajawa area. It said the aircraft waited in Labuan Bajo for nearly two hours before returning to Kupang.
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