King and Queen of Belgium Stranded in Chile After Flight Malfunction

NEED TO KNOW

• King Philippe and Queen Mathilde are stuck in Chile following problems with the aircraft that was supposed to take them home

• The King and Queen of Belgium were due to fly home on Thursday, June 26, but a “tire incident” involving their flight pushed the plan back

• King Philipp, 65, and Queen Mathilde, kicked off their Chile trip a day late after “technical problems” with their flight there

King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium’s official trip to Chile is extending longer than expected.

According to reports, as of June 27, the Belgian royals remain in Chile following a problem with their flight home. King Philippe, 65, and Queen Mathilde, 52, were due to wrap a state visit to the South American country on Thursday, June 26.

HLN reported that the King and Queen were supposed to take off on Thursday at 5 p.m., local time, from Antofagasta Airport, but the plane never made it off the runway.

The Belgian paper said that the royals were the last to board before it made its way to position on the runway, but that the Airbus rattled as the cabin crew gave safety instructions. As a tow truck moved the plane to its take-off position, a tire was reportedly damaged.

Belga New Agency said that the King, Queen and the ministers with them debarked the aircraft after the “tire incident,” with the departure expected to be delayed for a few hours. Other members of the delegation initially stayed on board, before being asked to debark. 

Following the tire replacement, the flight then required official clearance to fly, and the group moved to a hotel while waiting.

The outlet identified the aircraft as an Airbus A340-300 operated by Hi Fly, a Portuguese airline. Belga News Agency added that the earliest takeoff time was 12 p.m., local time, on June 27 — but the hiccups continued,

Around that hour, royal reporter Wim Dehandschutter wrote on X that the King and Queen “can’t fly back today” and that over 16 hours later, the repaired tire has not officially been approved. The update came with a video of King Philippe speaking to the delegation.

The transit trouble is the second issue that the King and Queen of Belgium have had on the their Chile trip.

The state visit was originally expected to begin on Monday, June 23, but the schedule was cut short by one day due to difficulty with the outward flight, which was also an Airbus A340-300.

The royals had planned to fly out from the military airport in Melsbroek around 9 a.m., local time, on Sunday, June 22, but “technical problems” with the aircraft delayed their departure, HLN said.

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King Philippe and Queen Mathilde were later able to fly out of Belgium on Monday morning at 9 a.m, a whole day later.

They attended a welcome ceremony in the capital of Santiago with President Gabriel Boric on Tuesday, June 24 and hit the ground running, undertaking a program focused on diplomatic, economic, scientific and social stops and activities while abroad.

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