Air China plane from London-Beijing lands in Siberia with engine trouble, Russian authorities say

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FILE PHOTO: Air Chinas logo is seen on a counter of Air China at a terminal of Beijing Capital International Airport in Beijing, China, March 28, 2016.REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon/File Photo

MOSCOW - An Air China plane flying to Beijing from London with 265 people on board made an unscheduled landing in Siberia due to engine trouble, Russias state aviation watchdog said in a statement on Tuesday.

Flightradar24 showed that the Boeing 777 landed in Russias Nizhnevartovsk airport in western Siberia.

While flying from London to Beijing, the crew of an Air China Boeing 777-300 decided to land at an alternate airfield in Russia, Rosaviatsia, Russias civil aviation authority, said. The preliminary cause was a malfunction of one of the engines.

Air China had decided to send a reserve plane to Nizhnevartovsk, Rosaviatsia said. It would arrive later on Tuesday and fly the 250 passengers and 15 crew to Beijing, it said. REUTERS