Chaos in the sky: Lufthansa flight returns to Munich due to thunderstorms!

Chaos in the sky: Lufthansa flight returns to Munich due to thunderstorms!

An exciting and at the same time turbulent chapter occurred on May 20, 2025, when Lufthansa flight LH2272, which took off from Munich at 11:18 a.m., did not fly to Nice as planned, but returned to Munich after a horrific turn of events. Instead of the hoped-for landing in the southern French city, the plane was spotted again in the passengers' hometown at around 2:15 p.m. A violent storm with heavy rain and limited visibility made landing in Nice impossible, as merkur.de reported.

This was the second unplanned return of a Lufthansa aircraft in just a few days, underlining the challenges at Nice Airport. Located by the sea and surrounded by mountains, the airport is known for often making landings a gamble in difficult weather conditions. The pilots had to use all their skills to ensure the safety of the passengers.

Weather conditions in Nice

On the day of return, the weather at Nice Airport, known by the ICAO code LFMN, was anything but inviting. According to the weather data, visibility was over 10 kilometers, but the forecast conditions for landings were uncomfortable. Thunderstorms and strong winds posed additional challenges. The wind was blowing from a direction of 060° at a speed of 14 knots, and clouds formed at various altitudes up to 23,000 feet, according to metar-taf.com.

Although the weather appeared pleasant at 9:00 a.m. on June 4, 2025 with a temperature of 23°C, the forecasts for the upcoming landing in Nice were not reassuring. Instead, the crew resorted to an already familiar strategy and turned back to ensure the safety of the passengers.

Rebooking options and challenges

The decision to return to Munich was made not only because of the weather, but also because of the better rebooking options for passengers. Lufthansa assured travelers that they would have more options in the Bavarian capital to continue their trip or rebook. The case also demonstrated that Nice Airport is considered challenging not only because of its geographical location, but also because of its climatic conditions.

Over the last few weeks, flight LH2272 has had a pretty decent track record. Until the incident on May 20, this flight was able to operate regularly, with the exception of a few delays, as shown by the latest arrival times. So travelers could trust that the flight was indeed reliable - at least until that stormy day.

This turbulent episode shows once again that flying is an art, and sometimes even the most weatherproof plans can falter. Passengers planning to travel to Nice during this period need to be prepared for possible unexpected turns of events.