An Emirates flight from London Heathrow to Dubai on New Year’s Eve ended up circling mid-air for 90 minutes. However, it was later grounded after it experienced some fault mid-air. Here’s what happened on the flight EK002.
An Emirates Returns To London Heathrow Airport After Takeoff
EK002, which was scheduled to fly with Airbus A380, departed from London Heathrow at 2:32 PM on Wednesday, December 31st. However, it was 52 minutes late, as revealed in a report of The National News. As it happens, this flight was scheduled to land in Dubai at 12:40 AM on Thursday morning, but once this flight was airborne, there was an issue with the landing gear door. It meant that it had not shut properly and remained open mid air. The National News reported that this was mentioned by the cabin crew, which meant that the flight had to make a return to the London airport.
It Circled Over Southeast London For 90 Minutes
It should be noted that the aircraft was significantly over its maximum landing weight, so it had to dispose of fuel for over an hour in order to ensure safe arrival. The pilot entered a holding pattern at 10,000 feet over Southeast London for 90 minutes. Once the engines were able to consume enough fuel to lighten the plane, it was ready for landing. As mentioned in the same report, observers could see the plane circling around the city with its landing gear still visible.
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So, once the weight was in same limit, the flight was cleared for approach and landed back in Heathrow at 4:28 PM. Passengers on board were to be rebooked on the Emirates flight from London Heathrow, as revealed by the representative. Although it must have been an inconvenience for the passengers, the airline took this initiative to ensure that all the passengers and crew could be safe. After all, this is of utmost importance, and it must not be compromised.
Cover Image Courtesy: Emirates/X (Cover image is for representative purposes only)
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