Three aircraft were unable to land as scheduled at Novosibirsk-Tolmachevo Airport in Russia after a tractor was spotted operating near the runway. Air traffic controllers instructed the planes to go around.
According to AeroTelegraph, citing Russian media reports, the tractor driver was reportedly supposed to be sowing grass at the end of the runway.
It appears that he did so without authorization or coordination with air traffic control. Authorities are now investigating the incident.
In Siberia’s Novosibirsk, three passenger planes were forced to abort their landings and go around after a tractor unexpectedly drove close to the end of the runway at Tolmachevo Airport, according to URA.
The aircraft — two S7 Embraer 170s arriving from Ust-Kamenogorsk and Surgut, and a Rossiya Boeing 737-800 from Sochi — were approaching the airport when the tractor entered the area without prior clearance.
The tractor, operated by a subcontractor, was reportedly sowing grass beside Runway 34. An internal investigation is underway.
