Biman Bangladesh Airlines’ stranded Toronto-Rome-Dhaka flight arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) on Sunday, ending nearly 40 hours of disruption after a technical fault grounded the aircraft at Rome’s Fiumicino Airport.

“The flight landed safely at HSIA at 12:30pm with 247 passengers,” Biman Public Relations Officer Bosra Islam told Daily Waadaa.

Flight BG-306 departed Rome at 11pm local time on Saturday (3am BST on Sunday) after the aircraft underwent necessary repairs, technical checks and safety inspections, Biman officials said.

The flight was operated by a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner.

The aircraft originally carrying 259 passengers landed at the Italian airport at around 6am local time on Friday for a scheduled refuelling stop. Shortly after landing, passengers were informed that the aircraft had developed a technical problem that was expected to be fixed within an hour.

However, passengers remained inside the aircraft for around eight hours before being asked to disembark.

Around 170 passengers holding Bangladeshi passports remained stranded at the airport after the airline was unable to allow them to leave the premises because of visa-related restrictions imposed by Italian immigration authorities.

Of the remaining 80-90 passengers, some holding passports from countries including Canada and the United States were allowed to leave the airport and stay at nearby hotels. Some passengers also reportedly arranged alternative flights to Dhaka at their own expense.

On Saturday, Biman sent a flight carrying an engineering team, spare parts and equipment to address the aircraft’s technical problems.

The prolonged delay caused particular hardship for elderly passengers and children. Passengers alleged that Biman authorities had failed to provide adequate food or arrange hotel accommodation during the disruption.