A British Airways flight turned around mid-journey and returned to Heathrow after fumes filled the cockpit with its pilots forced to wear oxygen masks.
The flight bound for Aberdeen was forced to turn back to Heathrow on Saturday evening after fumes filled the cockpit, prompting pilots to declare an emergency.
The crew donned oxygen masks as a precaution while the nature of the odour remained unclear, working to prevent any spread of the fumes into the passenger cabin.
Emergency services were positioned along the runway as the Airbus A319 made its return landing at the London airport.
Video footage captured fire crews and emergency vehicles stationed around the aircraft, with firefighters standing by to board once it came to a stop.
A source, speaking to the Sun, described the ordeal as “terrifying.”
They said: “Passengers were scared and feared the worst but the pilots were heroes.”
The witness explained that crew members had to use breathing apparatus because “they were not clear what the odour was”, while taking steps to ensure fumes remained contained within the flight deck.
The British Airways flight heading for Aberdeen had to head back to London after the cockpit filled with smoke
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The source said: “As the plane came in to land the emergency services lined the runway. It was very dramatic.”
However, the incident was notably less severe than a 2019 incident when smoke entered the cabin of a BA aircraft approaching Valencia, forcing passengers to evacuate via emergency slides.
British Airways confirmed that standard procedures were followed in response to what the airline described as “a technical issue” affecting the Saturday night service.
The carrier did not provide further details regarding the source of the fumes that had prompted the emergency declaration.
Emergency services were positioned along the runway as the Airbus A319 made its return landing at the London airport
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GETTY
Following checks on the ground at Heathrow, the Airbus A319 was cleared to continue its journey and subsequently completed the route to Aberdeen Airport.
No injuries were reported among passengers or crew members during the incident, which saw the aircraft safely returned to its departure point before eventually reaching its Scottish destination.
This story comes after another British airline found one its planes in a tricky situation over the weekend.
An EasyJet flight travelling from Venice to Paris was forced to abort its landing at Paris-Orly Airport after the pilot spotted fireworks being let off by a nearby wedding celebration just moments before touchdown.
The captain of flight EJU4874 observed bursts of light and smoke close to the runway threshold at around 5.40pm local time on April 5, and immediately pulled the aircraft away from danger.
Climbing sharply and circling around the surrounding area for some time, the aircraft waited while air traffic control worked to find an alternative landing strip.
Runway three was closed immediately, with armed police dispatched to identify the source of the explosions.
Officers traced the fireworks to a wedding convoy of around fifteen vehicles at a junction close to the airport perimeter.
A sedan and several individuals firing pyrotechnics into the air were identified in connection with the incident, though no arrests have been made.
The aircraft eventually touched down safely on an alternative runway without incident and EasyJet confirmed that passenger safety was never compromised.
This closure of the runway caused disruption to operations at one of France’s busiest airports, which handles nearly 35 million passengers a year.
The incident raised fresh questions about security measures around the airport’s perimeter, given how close the fireworks were discharged to an active flight path.
EasyJet stressed that its pilots are extensively trained to perform such manoeuvres, describing the go-around as a routine precautionary procedure carried out in line with standard protocols.
Authorities are continuing to examine the circumstances surrounding the incident.
