Tense moment pilot battles to land passenger jet with faulty flaps before it hits the runway in a cloud of smoke in Lanzarote after flight from UK

This is the thrilling moment when a pilot struggles to land a passenger plane with defective flaps before it hits the runway in a cloud of smoke.

Frightened passengers on the TUI flight from Exeter to the Canary Islands suffered a near miss when the plane struggled to land properly in Lanzarote due to a problem with one of the flaps.

The plane hovers above the runway before abruptly hitting the ground, creating a cloud of smoke on impact, before coming to a stop.

Air traffic controllers (ATC) reported that after being informed of the problem by the pilot, they instructed the aircraft to wait west of Lanzarote while they diverted other aircraft and cleared the approach for landing.

‘Once completed, we positioned flight BY6462 for a direct approach to runway 03, landing and clearing the runway without incident. Once it cleared the runway, it was inspected by firefighters in case an emergency disembarkation was required,” ATC said of the incident on Thursday.

The plane hovers above the runway before abruptly hitting the ground, creating a cloud of smoke on impact, before coming to a stop.

The flaps on the back of the aircraft’s wings are used during takeoff to ‘lift’ the aircraft off the ground. They also help the pilot make maneuvers and slow down the aircraft during landing.

Earlier this month, a holidaymaker was trapped and forcibly marched off a Ryanair flight by police after a flight from Luton to Lanzarote was diverted to Portugal due to his behaviour.

The man, believed to be British, was forcibly removed from the plane by a dozen Portuguese police officers as other passengers looked on in amazement.

A fellow passenger who filmed the shocking scenes at Faro airport told MailOnline: ‘There was a group of men who appeared to be drunk and were harassing some female passengers.

‘When things started to get a bit out of hand, one of the stewards tried to intervene and was eventually overthrown.

‘At this point the captain warned over the tannoy that unacceptable behavior would not be tolerated and that if it did not stop we would divert to Portugal.

‘But the commotion did not stop and twenty minutes later we were told that we would be landing in twenty minutes with no further information.

After the pilot stabilizes the plane, it makes a left turn towards the airport. Air traffic controllers (ATC) reported that after being informed of the problem by the pilot, they instructed the aircraft to wait west of Lanzarote while they diverted other aircraft and cleared the approach for landing.

“The man fighting in the video initially deplaned voluntarily, but for some reason re-entered the plane and was then forcibly removed by police, who placed him in a headlock.”

“This man was one of many who were taken away,” the passenger said.

‘It was quite shocking to see. We’re all a bit shocked.’

Footage filmed in the cabin showed several passengers with their phones off, watching in amazement as police dragged the man down the aisle.

The man is seen struggling with the officers, prompting them to put him in a headlock in an attempt to subdue him.

Another officer is seen holding his arm out in front of him and dragging him towards the exit.

The plane left London’s Luton Airport at 8am and was due to reach Lanzarote at 12.15pm local time on January 19.

However, the plane was diverted to Portugal’s airport and landed in Faro in Portugal’s Algarve region at around 10:50 am local time, with police boarding shortly afterwards.

In a statement to MailOnline, Ryanair said: ‘This flight from London Luton to Lanzarote was diverted to Faro when passengers on board became disruptive.

‘The crew called in advance for police assistance and the aircraft was met on arrival by local police, who removed the disruptive passengers. The flight continued with a short delay to Lanzarote. This is now a matter for the local police.’