Malfunction forces AirAsia X to abort flight, turn back: CEO

KUALA LUMPUR - The pilots of an AirAsia X flight from Kuala Lumpur to Jeddah on Sunday aborted the flight and circled for hours to burn off fuel before landing safely in Malaysia, the AirAsia Group's boss said.

"One auto-thrust not functioning properly. Actually okay to fly but we just returning it to base," Tony Fernandes told AFP in a text message, calling it a "minor issue."

He confirmed the plane landed safely at Kuala Lumpur's international airport late Sunday afternoon.