meanign of "our redirect was unscheduled"

[kjc0123]

What is the meanign of "our redirect was unscheduled" in the following sentences?

 

Fache lowered his voice. "Where are you landing?"
"One moment." Aringarosa covered the receiver and then came back. "The pilot is trying to get clearance at Heathrow. I'm his only passenger, but our redirect was unscheduled."
"Tell him to come to Biggin Hill Executive Airport in Kent. I'll get him clearance. If I'm not here when you land, I'll have a car waiting for you."

[ChocClare]

I'd have to know what had happened in the story just before this to be absolutely sure, but it sounds like their plane has been diverted (sent somewhere else) and that Aringarosa has just found out that this was not meant to have happened or that there is no record of it at.  So the pilot is trying to land at Heathrow, but is not being allowed to do so because they are not expecting him (he has been REDIRECTed from somewhere else).  Does this make sense?

[jno]

yes, redirect as a noun is American - British people would probably say diversion. But most redirects will be unscheduled, so it's not quite clear what the writer was thinking.

[Clanad]

Redirect is an unusual description of  "diverted to an alternate"... one I've not really seen (or heard) here in the U.S.  However, the gist of the meaning is obviously the same in this context of going to a destination other than the originally planned one...

[Peter Pedant]

It seems to me that it is straightforward - he is not going to land at X , but is now going to land at Y, and this is not predictable,

and whoever is going to meet him at X with the car is now going to have to get his a+rse over to Y to meet him.

[jhiker]

Indeed, he has been redirected but was not expecting it and had no prior warning. Watch out! - it may be a trap....

Do you need to know how the book ends....?