An EasyJet passenger plane has made an emergency landing at Gatwick Airport after it was hit by a ‘hydraulic failure’ in mid-air.
The plane was carrying around 244 holidaymakers to the Spanish island of Tenerife when the incident happened.
Flight U28033 was travelling over western France this morning when it sent out the emergency code 7700, MailOnline reports.
It was forced to turn back to Gatwick where it had departed from.
The Airbus A321neo passenger plane reportedly had a hydraulic failure at about 8.40am, the outlet said citing Flight Emergency.
A spokeswoman for Gatwick Airport told the outlet: ‘The aircraft has landed safely and no operational impact at the airport.’
One passenger claimed the holidaymakers had to wait on the tarmac for more than an hour before they could leave after landing back at Gatwick.
Brian Marcel, 78, from London, who was on his way to Tenerife for a three-day golf holiday, told the outlet how some young people on board were ‘standing up’ before flight attendants told them that ‘unruly behaviour’ would get them kicked out.
When the flight landed, the plane had to be towed ‘because there were no hydraulics,’ he said.
Pictures from inside the plane show a police officer speaking to some passengers.
Another passenger, Annie Passingham, 32, from Bracknell, claimed that a group of men who had bought vodka were ‘drinking’ and ‘being verbally aggressive.’
But the group calmed down after the police boarded the jet, she told MailOnline.
While Mr Marcel said that there was ‘no panic’ when the plane turned back, others said that some fellow passengers appeared frightened.
Ms Passingham told the outlet that some children seemed panicked along with a man who was going to get married in Tenerife on Friday.
After waiting on the tarmac, the frustrated holidaymakers were finally told that they would get on another plane at 1.30pm.
A spokesperson for EasyJet told Metro.co.uk: ‘We can confirm that the Captain of flight EZY8033 from London Gatwick to Tenerife took the decision to return to Gatwick as a precaution, due to a technical issue.
‘The Captain performed a routine landing in accordance with standard operating procedures and passengers have disembarked normally.
‘We arranged for an alternative aircraft to operate the flight to Tenerife and would like to thank customers for their patience and apologise for any inconvenience caused as a result of the delay.
‘The safety and wellbeing of our customers and crew is our highest priority and easyJet operates its aircraft in strict compliance with manufacturer guidelines.’
It comes after a Delta Airlines flight with 277 passengers on board made an emergency landing at JFK Airport on Wednesday after a ‘contamination’ incident.
Passengers were served ‘contaminated food’ on the flight from Detroit to Amsterdam, forcing it to return back to New York’s JFK Airport.
Were you on board the flight? Please contact [email protected].
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