American Airlines Flight Fumes Cause Emergency Landing
An American Airlines flight had to make an emergency landing on Tuesday with 12 crew members and 133 passengers on board. According to officials with the Civil Protection Agency, 5 crew members on the flight became ill in the aircraft’s kitchen after chemical fumes leaked in the cabin, so the pilot diverted the plane to land in Iceland.
The aircraft was flying in British airspace at the time of the incident and was able to land at Keflavik airport just after 1:45pm local time. When the plane touched down, there were 8 ambulances there to take care of passengers and crew, but there weren’t any serious injury reports. Keflavik airport spokesman Fridthor Eydal said that many of the passengers complained about being dizzy.
The American Airlines flight was being operated by a Boeing 767 and departed the Paris Charles de Gaulle airport en route to Dallas Fort Worth airport in Texas, US. Air traffic control in the UK handled the request from the pilot to divert the flight. Eydal says that the pilot cited the smell of the fumes in the cabin as the reason why he wanted to divert the plane.
A spokesman for American Airlines said that medical staff was on the scene, but there were no reports of anyone suffering from fumes. Mechanics were inspecting the plane, he continued, and another plane was to arrive in Iceland to continue the passengers on their journey to the US. An investigation is still underway into finding the cause of the leaked fumes.
This news came at the same time a Cathay Pacific Airways flight had to emergency land in Hong Kong. However, 8 passengers suffered injuries from the landing, with the tyres catching fire, but there were no serious injuries.
Find Cheap Flights!
Comments
Got something to say?