MUSCAT: The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) denied a false news published by a foreign online newspaper stating that the Omani authorities had rejected a request made by Sri Lankan Airlines flight for emergency landing after it encountered a mid-air fuel shortage.

In a statement issued on Monday, CAA said it did not receive any request from the flight for emergency landing. “Those concerned with the authority had verified the issue by referring to the requests for flight permits, as well as following up on the navigational communication records, and it became clear that the authority did not receive any request for an emergency landing from the aforementioned plane,” CAA said.

“The records show that the first contact with the Air Traffic Control Centre with the pilot of the Sri Lankan plane (flight number ALK504 on July 6, 2021) was before the plane entered the Sultanate’s airspace. The control centre asked the pilot to give a direct route only due to a shortage of fuel on the plane, and his request was met immediately,” CAA explained.

CAA said it also “coordinated with the SriLankan Airlines on this subject, which also confirmed that the published news was false.”

The Civil Aviation Authority stressed that it will “spare no effort in responding quickly to any emergency, in order to preserve the lives of passengers and in compliance with international conventions and charters.”