A KLM flight carrying the Queen of Belgium was forced to make an emergency landing after a crack appeared in the the plane’s cockpit windshield.
Queen Mathilde was on a 11-hour flight from Amsterdam to San Jose in Costa Rica for a three-day trip organised by Unicef when the damage to the Boeing 787-9 occurred.
As a result, the pilot requested a priority landing at the destination airport, with the plan landing 11 minutes early on Sunday at 5pm local time.
On board was Belgium royal commentator Wim Dehandschutter, who said he was surprised to learn about issue on landing. He wrote on X: “The airplane with Belgian Queen Mathilde landed in Costa Rica with a cracked windshield.
“I was on that flight. As passengers, we didn’t notice anything, and we didn’t receive any notification during the flight or upon landing.
“Our KLM flight did leave Schiphol 20 minutes late, there was turbulence – as on many flights – and the landing was quite hard, but nothing seemed to be alarming. So I was a bit surprised when I read reports in the local media and on X about the “emergency landing.”
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A social media post from aviation expert @fl360aero said the aircraft was built in 2016, and showed a picture of the damaged windshield to the plane.
It reported: “A KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner plane (PH-BHD) with a cracked LH side windshield arrived at San José Juan Santamaria Intl. Airport (SJO) with priority landing on Runway 07 after a 10:43 hours flight, on Sunday (09 February) afternoon.”
KLM confirmed the incident and said the safety of the passengers and crew were never at risk, according to the Mirror. The plan is reportedly in Costa Rica awaiting repairs. The Independent has contacted KLM for comment.
Queen Mathilde is in Costa Rica to help the government set up childcare facilities in vulnerable neighbourhoods as part of the UNICEF mission. Pictures have been posted by the royal family on social media, showing her at work with children.
She has visited La Cometa, a public childcare centre in Tirrases, in the province of San José, and Lloverá Foundation, an organisation that supports and guides homeless people in Costa Rica.
Her engagement also saw her go to a coffee plantation that supports the children of seasonal workers. The 52-year-old royal is due to return to Belgium on Wednesday.
