A Chinese passenger jet traveling from London to Beijing made an emergency landing in Siberia because of engine damage, Russian state news agency TASS reported Tuesday.
Powered by its second engine, the Air China Boeing 777 touched down safely with 250 passengers and 15 crew on board at Nizhnevartovsk Airport.
Nizhnevartovsk was chosen because of its long runway and good weather, according to the Russian Telegram channel Baza.
The city, which is important for the oil industry, is located about 2,300 kilometres east of Moscow and 3,500 kilometres from Beijing.
Air China was sending a replacement aircraft to pick up the passengers, the Russian aviation authority Rosaviatsiya said.
Flying over Russia is the shortest path between Europe and East Asia.
However, due to EU sanctions over the Ukraine war, Western airlines cannot use this route and mostly fly around Russia to the south, which extends flight times and increases fuel consumption.
China and other countries friendly to Moscow continue to use Russian airspace.
