Turkish minister deplanes following passengers’ protest
ISTANBUL
DHA Photo
Turkish Interior Minister İdris Naim Şahin was obliged to leave a plane when other passengers protested a 20-minute delay he had caused in the Black Sea province of Trabzon, daily Hürriyet reported today.
The passengers began to clap for the minister when he boarded the plane at 9:05 p.m., even though it had been scheduled to take off at 8:45 p.m. The minister thought at first that the passengers were cheering for him. He thanked and waved to them.
However, he left the plane after he realized that he was being protested as the whistles and clapping continued.
Şahin reportedly flew to Ankara on another plane.
Officials from Turkish Airlines said the cause of the delay was not the minister but some operational issues, reports said.