A technical fault forced a Malaysia Airlines flight from Chennai, India, to Kuala Lumpur to land in Penang today, according to Penang International Airport senior manager Mohd Arif Jaafar.

He said the plane landed at 8.04am at the airport after the pilot detected the fault.

"We gave clearance for the aircraft to land as the priority was for the safety of the passengers and crew on board.

"This resulted in a delay in the landing of several other flights here," he said when contacted by Bernama .

Mohd Arif said the plane was being checked and was expected to resume the journey to KL International Airport soon.

It is learnt that Malaysia's special envoy for infrastructure to India and South Asia S Samy Vellu was among the passengers.

- Bernama