21 from Singapore's youth football academy team stranded in Turkey airport

SINGAPORE - A Singapore children's football team from Singapore's F-17 Academy is stranded in Turkey's Antalya Airport after its flight to Istanbul was diverted due to a coup attempt in the country.

The group of 21 were on their way to the Gothia Cup in Sweden, and were headed to Istanbul on Turkish Airline flight TK55 for a transit flight to Copenhagen in Denmark.

From Copenhagen, they were to take a train to Gothenburg in Sweden to represent Singapore for the football tournament which runs from Sunday till July 25.

There are two coaches, six parents and 13 children aged eight to 14 years old in the group.

The group left Singapore at 10pm on Friday. They were briefly informed by the plane captain of the coup in Turkey.

Their plane was then diverted to the international airport in Antalya, which is in southern Turkey.

"No one seems to be attending to them there. And there are thousands of people there from the numerous flights that got redirected to Antalya," said Mr Nabil Yusoff, the academy's director.

A parent with the group, Ms Sia Hwee Mian, told The Straits Times that they were safe but had very little information from the authorities.

There were no airport personnel there, and it was unclear if the airport was operational, she said.

They have been at the airport since about 3am (8am Singapore time).

"Everyone's just waiting, long snaking queue at one cafe. Only a couple of cafes opened, the rest of the shops are closed," she said in text messages.

"What's frustrating is that there's no information forthcoming and we have no idea what to do."

Other parents were equally frustrated.

"There is no official or anyone here to give us any updates. Neither is there any official communication channel here like an electronic signage or message on TV. Only loads of people from different flights sitting around everywhere," said Ms Radhika Radhakrishnan.

"No one has said anything to us in the five hours we have been here. Who knows when we will be able to get out," said Ms Lee Suk Houn.

Mr Israel Louis Ismail, the father of two of the team members, is currently in Gothenburg waiting for the arrival of the team. He said that he hopes the team can make it for their first match on Monday (July 18).

"Safety is of course the first concern. But... am really hoping our team can catch a connecting flight in time for our first match... They've trained so hard for this tournament and are so brave right now in the midst of this coup."

"Until the situation becomes clearer, we advise Singaporeans to avoid non-essential travel to Turkey for the time being," a spokesman said.

MFA advised Singaporeans in Turkey to "stay indoors, monitor the news closely and e-register with MFA".

"They should let their family and friends know that they are safe," it added.

Deputy Prime Minister said at a Yellow Ribbon event on Saturday that he has woken up to turmoil all over the world for the past two days.

" The situation in Turkey is still very fluid... the events over the last two days displayed how important it is for us to look after our security and make sure that we can enjoy the peace and harmony that we've had for many more years to come," he said.

Those who require consular assistance can contact the Singapore Embassy in Ankara or the 24-hour MFA duty office at:

Embassy of the Republic of Singapore in Ankara

Tel: + 90 530 066 7311

Email: singemb_ank@mfa.sg

MFA duty office

Tel: +65 6379 8800 / 8855

Email: mfa_duty_officer@mfa.gov.sg