Bangladesh national football team survived a scare as their Oman-bound Bangladesh Biman aircraft returned to the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport after hovering in the sky for nearly an hour following a late departure.

The Bangladesh booters were scheduled to leave Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 9:30 pm on Sunday (Nov 3).

“Our flight was at 9.45 pm but it was delayed by almost two hours. The flight even hovered in the air for half an hour after take-off. Then the announcement came from the captain that we were going back to Dhaka because of some technical problem. Naturally, we all were scared,” Bangladesh goalkeeper Ashraful Islam Rana wrote on his facebook on Monday (Nov 4).

The team eventually left for Muscat at around 11:00 am by BG021 flight of Bangladesh Biman.

The team will have a 10-day training camp in Muscat which will be followed by the World Cup qualifying fixture against Oman on Nov 14.

The Red and Greens are at the bottom of Group E with a single point from three games, but a dominating draw against India in Kolkata last month following a close 2-0 defeat against Qatar at home lifted the spirit of the footballers and everyone concerned.