Air Canada flight diverts back to London Heathrow after mid-air emergency

A Toronto-bound Air Canada flight was forced to return to Heathrow after the crew declared a mid-air emergency less than an hour after takeoff

An Air Canada flight declared a mid-air emergency shortly after departing London Heathrow Airport.

Flight AC853, bound for Toronto, left the London hub at 8:34am on Saturday (May 2) ascending to 34,000 feet and heading out across the Atlantic as expected. However, less than an hour into the flight, the crew declared an emergency by transmitting a Squawk 7700 code, which signals a serious problem on board to air traffic control, reports the Mirror.

The aircraft, a Boeing 777-300ER, swiftly abandoned its transatlantic course and made a controlled U-turn back towards Heathrow, with emergency services placed on standby as a precautionary measure.

Air Canada has yet to confirm the nature of the emergency, with such alerts covering a broad range of situations, from technical malfunctions to medical incidents on board.

Flight tracking data reveals the aircraft began its return shortly after reaching cruising altitude at around 09:15 BST, before starting its descent back towards London.

The plane touched down safely on runway 27L at approximately 10:02 BST, with landings on Heathrow’s south runway briefly halted moments afterwards. Passengers were escorted back to the terminal after the aircraft taxied to the gate accompanied by emergency vehicles.

Despite the alarming turn of events, no injuries have been reported. Air Canada has since moved to reschedule the disrupted service, with a replacement flight set to depart later that morning. Emergency crews at Heathrow remained on high alert throughout the incident, in line with standard procedure for any aircraft declaring a full emergency.

The incident is now set to undergo a full review, with both the airline and airport authorities expected to release further information in due course.

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