A passenger jet of a South Korean low-cost carrier bound for China's northeastern city of Harbin has flown back home due to the record heavy smog in China, the company said Wednesday.

The ZE861 plane of Eastar Jet Co., carrying 144 passengers, took off at 2:50 p.m. on Tuesday but returned to Cheongju International Airport at 9:40 p.m. on the same day.

"The smog near the airport in Harbin was so heavy that the plane could not make a landing," a company official said. "The plane made a temporary landing in a nearby airport in Changchun and returned to South Korea after refueling."

The passengers, mostly Chinese who were on their way back home after visiting South Korea, were staying in a hotel in Cheongju, some 137 kilometers south of Seoul.

A substitute flight is scheduled for 3:40 p.m. on Wednesday. (Yonhap)