Jet2 Flight LS3643 departed from Bournemouth this morning and was forced to divert to Portugal after an ‘aroma’ was detected in the cabin
A Jet2 flight from the UK to the Canary Islands has been diverted as a “red code alert” was declared.
The packed holiday jet from Bournemouth to Gran Canaria has been diverted to Faro in Portugal after an “aroma was detected” in the cabin.
The incident triggered a “red code alert” at the Algarve airport with emergency response vehicles being mobilised. Thankfullly, the plane landed safely. Local sources said the diversion was due to “smoke in the cabin”.
Jet2 Flight LS3643 had departed from Bournemouth at 9.55am and was due to arrive in Gran Canaria around 3.5 hours later. It landed at Faro around 12.25pm local time in Portugal.
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A Jet2 spokesperson said: “Our highly trained crew operating flight LS3643 from Bournemouth to Gran Canaria elected to divert to Faro as a precautionary measure after an aroma was detected in the cabin.
“At no point was safety compromised whatsoever, and the aircraft landed safely. A standby aircraft will fly customers from Faro to Gran Canaria, and we would of course like to sincerely apologise to customers for this delay.”
More than 140 passengers are believed to have been on board the Boeing 747. Portuguese press claimed this afternoon some crew had to be assisted for smoke inhalation.
In December last year another Jet2 plane, heading from London Stansted to the Canary Islands, was diverted to Portugal following a red alert. The Boeing 737 was on its way to Fuerteventura but instead landed at Faro Airport.
Emergency services including paramedics and firefighters were put on standby at Faro Airport as part of protocol red alert procedure. Civil Protection said 35 vehicles and more than 80 responders had been mobilised, including their workers, police, ambulances and firefighters.
Squawk Alert, which follows commercial airlines that declare emergencies, said at the time: “The crew of Jet2 flight EXS83LV from London to Fuerteventura has declared an emergency and are diverting to Faro.”
Earlier the same month a plane packed with returning UK tourists had to divert following a mid-air toilet malfunction. Ryanair flight FR1667 should have reached Bristol around 5pm on December 8 after departing from Fuerteventura at lunchtime.
But it diverted to the neighbouring Canary Island of Lanzarote shortly into its 3.5 hour journey after “some toilets” stopped working according to local air traffic controllers.
