British Airways flight from London to Norway makes emergency landing in the Netherlands after ‘smoke pours into the cockpit’ during mid-air drama
A British Airways plane has been forced to make an emergency landing in the Netherlands after smoke reportedly began filling the cockpit in mid-air.
The flight was en route from London to the Norwegian city of Oslo when the captain alerted air traffic controllers and told them the plane had to land immediately.
Several fire engines and emergency vehicles were sent to the runway of Schiphol Airport, where the Airbus A320 landed with up to 190 people on board.
Terrified passengers were reportedly told the plane had to land due to ‘safety fears’ before being led out through the back door, which was furthest from the allegedly smoking cockpit.
Flight BA764 left Heathrow shortly after 5pm yesterday, but the captain had to make the distress call just 90 minutes into the flight.
Several fire engines and emergency vehicles were sent to the runway of Schiphol Airport, where the Airbus A320 landed with up to 190 people on board
The flight was en route from London to the Norwegian city of Oslo when the captain alerted air traffic controllers and told them the plane had to land immediately.
Flight BA764 left Heathrow shortly after 5pm yesterday, but the captain had to make the distress call just 90 minutes into the flight. The plane landed at 7:38 p.m. and blocked the runway while emergency services cleared the plane
The plane landed at 7:38 p.m. and blocked the runway while emergency services cleared the plane.
This caused further delays at Schiphol Airport, where the timetable had already been changed to clear the runway for the BA flight.
Investigators are now examining the plane to see what caused the reported smoke.
Passengers were housed in hotels in Amsterdam yesterday and were able to continue their journey to Oslo on another plane today.
“Smoke in the cockpit is never a good thing and at 30,000 feet it is alarming to say the least,” a source told the Sun.
‘It was a tough ride for the passengers, but they were in safe hands. The landing of the plane in a remote part of the airport in Amsterdam shows how serious the situation was.’
The source added that the plane had landed on the remote runway to keep the “smoking plane as far away from the terminal building as possible.”
British Airways said in a statement: ‘This aircraft has been diverted to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport as a precaution following a minor technical problem on board.
“We have apologized to our customers for the disruption to their travel plans.”