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A flight of Virgin Atlantic had to opt for an emergency landing at Manchester Airport after the cockpit reportedly started to fill up with smoke. The news comes almost three weeks after another Virgin Atlantic flight with 187 passengers had to land at the Hewanorra International Airport due to technical issues.
The latest incident happened on January 7, 2024, at around 1:50 p.m., as per Manchester Evening News. AirLive states that flight VS77 took off from Manchester Airport and there were unconfirmed reports of smoke in the cockpit. The airline company also shared a statement, saying that the smoke was the result of some technical failure,
"The safety and security of our customers and crew is always our top priority and we apologize for any inconvenience caused. We'll ensure our customers can complete their travel plans and keep them updated directly on next steps."
AirLive additionally stated that while the flight managed to make the landing without any trouble, the fire engines immediately arrived at the spot to take care of the brakes.
Virgin Atlantic flight emergency landing at Manchester Airport: Circumstances leading to the landing explained
The Virgin Atlantic flight VS77 left Manchester Airport at around 1 p.m. and after 20 minutes, the flight reported a squawk emergency due to a "dense and acrid smell of smoke", which was witnessed by the pilots while returning. The flight was on its way to Bridgetown and it was eventually canceled.
The Sun states that the flight was on top of the Irish Sea when it had to make the emergency landing. The Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service issued a statement on the landing, saying that firefighters were waiting near the runway to deal with any kind of emergency,
"Three fire engines from Wythenshawe and Stockport, the Technical Response Unit from Ashton and the Command Support Unit from Hyde arrived quickly at the scene."
The passengers also shared their experiences on social media since they were not aware of the reasons behind the emergency landing. One of them also asked for an update on what would happen next after the flight's cancelation. The statement of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service also revealed that the crew members remained at the place for around "one and a half hours."
A Wales-based woman revealed on X that she witnessed the Virgin Atlantic flight flying in a "strange" manner and realized that the flight was possibly having some problems. She also stated that she had never witnessed anything similar in the past until it was an emergency condition.
Another Virgin Atlantic flight makes an emergency lancing
Back in December last year, another Virgin Atlantic flight, VS221, was flying to St Lucia from Heathrow but it suffered a technical problem in mid-air. The flight was allowed to land at the Hewanorra International Airport and a statement by the airline company reads in part,
"The safety and welfare of our customers and crew will always be our number one priority. The aircraft landed safely and all customers disembarked as normal."
While the VS77 has landed safely, an official cause leading to the smoke is yet to be revealed.
