A Ryanair flight was forced to make an emergency landing in Manchester after multiple failed landings left it with just minutes of fuel remaining.
File photo of a Ryanair plane(Image: SWNS)
A Ryanair plane was forced to make an emergency landing after coming within minutes of running out of fuel, sparking an official investigation.
The Malta Air-operated flight, travelling from Pisa in Italy to Prestwick Airport in Glasgow on October 3, issued a “fuel Mayday” mid-air after multiple failed landing attempts at both Prestwick and Edinburgh airports.
The pilots then diverted to Manchester, declaring a 7700 squawk code – the universal signal for a general emergency. When the aircraft finally touched down nearly two hours later, it reportedly had just 220kg of fuel left – enough for only five or six minutes of flying time.
Passenger Alexander Marchi said the ordeal began before the plane even left Italy, claiming protesters stormed the tarmac during a strike at Pisa Airport, delaying take-off.
He told the Ayr Advertiser: “After leaving late from Pisa because of a general strike and protesters invading the tarmac at the airport we were worried that we wouldn’t get to Prestwick before the storm hit. Everything was fine until we started our descent. The plane was circling a few times before trying the first time but pulling up almost immediately.
“We were told we would try one more time or we’d have to go to Manchester. The second time it was a very bumpy ride and we almost reached the tarmac, but at the last minute we pulled up very sharply. We realised how bad things had been after seeing the images after finally landing at Manchester with almost no fuel.
“There was a lot of relief. People were wanting to get off and definitely were not up for flying any time soon.”
More than 40,000 people tracked the flight online as it circled Prestwick and Edinburgh before the dramatic diversion, Mirror UK reports. Passengers eventually reached their destination in South Ayrshire by bus – around ten hours late.
A spokesman for Irish airline Ryanair said: “Ryanair reported this to the relevant authorities on Friday (Oct 3). As this is now subject of an ongoing investigation, which we are cooperating fully with, we are unable to comment.”
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