Jet2 flight LS167 took off from Glasgow Airport at around 3.30pm on Thursday bound for Arrecife Airport in Lanzarote
Passengers travelling from Glasgow to Lanzarote experienced an unexpected delay after their Jet2 flight was forced to divert to Portugal following a medical emergency on board.
Jet2 flight LS167 took off from Glasgow Airport at around 3.30pm on Thursday bound for Arrecife Airport in Lanzarote. However, more than halfway through the journey, the crew declared an emergency and diverted to Portugal.
The Boeing 737-800 had been cruising at around 37,000ft off the Portuguese coast, approximately two and a half hours into the flight, when pilots issued a squawk 7700 emergency signal and changed course for Faro Airport on the Algarve.
A squawk 7700 is the internationally recognised code used by pilots to alert air traffic control that an aircraft is experiencing an emergency. The code gives the flight priority to land, with emergency services typically deployed as a precaution. It does not indicate the nature of the emergency, which can range from a technical issue to a medical incident.
In this case, the diversion is understood to have been prompted by a passenger medical emergency, according to aviation website AirLive. Emergency crews were waiting for the aircraft when it landed safely in Faro.
Flight tracking data from FlightRadar24 shows the aircraft flying south over the Atlantic Ocean alongside Portugal’s west coast before making a sharp turn and descending rapidly towards Faro.
The aircraft touched down at around 6.20pm local time, where it remained on the ground for approximately two hours.
After the unscheduled stop, the flight departed Faro at around 8pm before continuing to Lanzarote, eventually arriving at Arrecife Airport at around 9.35pm.
It is not known whether the passenger requiring medical assistance continued their journey or remained in Portugal for treatment.
The Daily Record has contacted Jet2 for comment.
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