American Airlines Flight to Naples Fails to Land... Why Did It Divert to Rome?

Unable to Land at Scheduled Airport Due to Aircraft Being 6 Meters Longer
Passengers Arrive in Rome, Take Bus to Naples

An American Airlines flight from Philadelphia, United States, to Naples, Italy, was unable to land at its scheduled destination due to a mismatch with the airport’s safety rating. As a result, the aircraft diverted to Rome Fiumicino Airport, and passengers had to take a bus for about two hours to reach Naples.

American Airlines passenger plane

According to a report by Business Insider on June 7 (local time), American Airlines Flight 780 departed from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at 7:42 p.m. on June 2 and was scheduled to arrive at Naples International Airport at 10:00 a.m. local time in Italy. However, about seven hours into the flight, the passenger plane abruptly changed course over the Tyrrhenian Sea near Naples and headed to Rome Fiumicino Airport.

At that point, the aircraft was only 70 miles (approximately 112 km) from its original destination, Naples International Airport. American Airlines apologized, stating, “We urgently changed the destination due to operational restrictions.”

The details are as follows. The aircraft was a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. According to official documents from Boeing and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), there are two similar Dreamliner models: the 787-8 and the 787-9. While both have similar widths, the 787-9 is about 20 feet (approximately 6 meters) longer and is therefore larger.

Naples International Airport, the original destination, is equipped with RFFS (Rescue and Firefighting Services) Category 8 facilities, which are based on the Boeing 787-8 model. However, the 787-9 model requires Category 9 or higher, making it impossible for this aircraft to land at that airport.

Ultimately, the passenger plane landed at Rome Fiumicino Airport at around 9:45 a.m. The distance between Fiumicino and Naples International Airport is 145 miles (approximately 233 km), so passengers had to endure the inconvenience of a bus ride of more than two hours to reach Naples. Regarding the incident, American Airlines stated, “We apologize for the inconvenience caused to our passengers during their journey.”