British Airways Flight Turns Back to Heathrow After Emergency Over Ireland
British Airways flight BA295 returned safely to London Heathrow after a sudden descent over Ireland on its way to Chicago. Oxygen masks dropped after…
British Airways flight BA295 turned back to London Heathrow after a steep descent over Ireland disrupted its journey to Chicago, prompting an emergency declaration and the release of oxygen masks. The aircraft landed safely, but the airline has not confirmed what caused the technical issue.
The Boeing 777-200ER had left Heathrow at 12.14pm on Monday, bound for Chicago’s O’Hare airport. About an hour into the flight, after reaching a cruising altitude of 37,000 feet, the plane began descending and returned to Britain.
Passengers felt turbulence shortly before the masks dropped. The incident forced the flight to abandon its transatlantic crossing, while many passengers were booked onto new flights departing Tuesday.
Pilots brought the aircraft below 10,000 feet and sent a 7700 emergency squawk to air traffic control, the international general emergency code. They then turned back towards England.
Flight-tracking services showed the plane circling over the Bristol Channel, between Pembrokeshire and North Devon, before its return to Heathrow just after 5pm. The aircraft remained in a holding pattern while it burned off fuel, lowering its weight for a normal landing.
The safe return meant the passengers could disembark normally, according to British Airways. But the disruption left travelers facing replacement arrangements, and the airline said its teams were working to get their plans back on track.
Tom Nicholls, a passenger on the flight, told the Guardian there had been a “sudden bit of turbulence” before the emergency was declared. He said the descent to 9,000 feet had not felt too uncomfortable.
“The plane adjusted but it didn’t feel like it was descending rapidly. I’d say the pilots did a very good job,” Nicholls said.
He said oxygen masks appeared soon afterwards, causing uncertainty among passengers. A couple seated in front of him initially could not reach masks, but found a spare seat with one. The captain then announced the aircraft was below 10,000 feet and the masks were not needed.
A British Airways spokesperson said the aircraft landed safely after the pilots returned to Heathrow following a technical issue. The spokesperson said customer and crew safety was the airline’s top priority, and that passengers left the aircraft normally.
Photographs shared by passengers on social media showed oxygen masks hanging from the cabin ceiling during the return journey. A rapid descent below 10,000 feet and a 7700 squawk are routinely associated with aircraft experiencing cabin depressurisation, the Guardian reported, but BA had not confirmed that as the cause of the emergency.
The Boeing 777-200ER had been delivered to British Airways in July 1997, making it one of the airline’s oldest aircraft still in service, according to the Guardian. The flight landed at Heathrow just after 5pm.
Source: theguardian.com
