Abuja Bound British Airways Makes Emergency U-Turn After Flying For 42 Minutes
LAGOS OCTOBER 25TH (NEWSRANGERS)-A FLIGHT travelling from Heathrow to Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, has been forced to return to London after an emergency was declared on air.
Flight Radar 24 retrieved data showing the plane returning to Britain from France. The aircraft had been flying for about 42 minuted before it was forced to make a U-turn.
The nature of the emergency is still unclear, but the aircraft is now back at London Heathrow airport.
The flight was about five hours from Abuja when it turned around over northern France.
It comes after on Wednesday another plane on route to Verona, Italy, was forced to return to London Heathrow Airport.
This separate incident triggered an emergency services response.
A video obtained by a passenger showed fire engines on the airport’s grounds upon the plane’s arrival at Heathrow.
The traveller added: “That was a long 10-minute emergency landing.”
Passengers safely disembarked and boarded a new plane, which flew to te original destination.
In a Twitter reply to a passenger, British Airways said: “We apologise for the delay to your flight today.
“We had to return back to London Heathrow due to a technical issue.”
“Safety is our number one priority and we would never continue a flight unless it was safe to do so.
“We are currently in the process of arranging a new aircraft so that we are able to get you to your destination.”
British Airways updated its departure time to 12.20 pm local time.
The airline added: “Please make your way to Gate C55 where your flight will be boarding from.”
BA said a technical issue was the cause behind the aircraft’s return.
A BA spokesman said: “The safety of our customers and crew is always our priority and the flight returned to Heathrow as a precaution due to a minor technical issue.
“We’ve apologised to our customers and have organised a replacement aircraft so that we can get them on their way again as quickly as possible.”
A spokesman from Heathrow Airport confirmed that the plane landed safely.
A passenger onboard the flight reported a smell of burning.
They also claimed that a crew member was feeling unwell.
Express.co.uk
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Posted by News Rangers
on Oct 25 2020. Filed under International, National.
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