Shenzhen Airlines compensated three Philippine visitors after their visas expired because of a delayed flight Monday.

The three were expected to reach Shenzhen from Jinan, the capital city of Shandong Province, in the late evening and then go to Hong Kong before their visas expired midnight Monday.

But their flight was delayed for seven hours and 41 minutes because of mechanical problems and they arrived in Shenzhen at 2:56 am Monday.

When the airline learned this, it got in touch with the Huanggang Checkpoint which operates around the clock. The checkpoint told the airline each visitor would have to pay a 500 yuan penalty. The airline decided to compensate each of them the 500 yuan.

It also assigned a car to take them from the airport to the checkpoint.

(Shenzhen Daily September 8, 2004)