The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Drama in the skies Bird strike ‘on the point of take-off ’
Transport: Bird strike as aircraft carrying almost 200 people was ‘on point of take-off ’
Firefighters stand by as almost 200 passengers disembark yesterday following an emergency landing at a Highland airport. Emergency services were scrambled after a bird strike just seconds before the easyJet flight took off.
A plane carrying almost 200 people was forced to make an emergency landing following a bird strike just seconds before takeoff.
Fire, ambulance and police were scrambled to Inverness Airport in the drama involving the 3pm easyJet flight to Gatwick, carrying 176 passengers plus crew.
The pilots managed to bring the aircraft down safely about 15 minutes later and passengers waited until the evening to get another flight to their destination.
Yesterday, passenger Graham Paterson described how the aircraft reached full speed before everyone heard a “horrendous noise” from the left hand side of the plane.
Mr Paterson, a company operations director from Drumnadrochit, said: “It was like going over a rumble strip on the motorway at 1,000mph. It was a very intense noise. I was trying to go to sleep at the time.
“We were right at the point of taking off as the front of the plane was just lifting up. It was about two to three seconds before we took off.
“The pilot had to keep going for a while at a reasonable speed and was climbing at a steep ascent, and it levelled off a lot quicker than normal.
“It was obvious something had gone wrong but the crew were brilliant in dealing with the situation. Everyone felt like it was always under control. The ground staff were brilliant and we were off the plane quicker than normal.”
The frequent flier said the captain announced on the public address system that they would be circling at 7,000ft before landing again at Inverness.
Mr Paterson said the plane was circling for 10 to 15 minutes prior to this.
He added: “When we landed the pilot came through and told us it might take a bit of time to inspect the engines. I could tell that there was a sense of relief on the plane – you could feel it in the air.”
A spokesman for Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd confirmed the aircraft landed safely at 3.40pm and that Inverness Airport staff co-ordinated with easyJet staff to ensure passengers were given assistance.
Humza Yousaf, Scottish Government Minister for Transport and the Islands, also posted a Tweet praising the captain and crew on the aircraft for performing a safe emergency landing.
Yesterday at the scene, passengers were seen being escorted off by airline and airport staff with the assistance of fire crews.
Police and the ambulance service were also called, in line with protocol, but were stood down.
The passengers were taken to the departure lounge where they waited for an easyJet flight which transported them to London Gatwick for about 10pm.
Michelle Smith, who has been living in London for 20 years but is originally from Tain, said: “All of the staff were very professional and handled the situation very well.”
She added that staff had informed passengers that an empty aircraft would be sent up from Luton to take the passengers to Gatwick.
An easyJet spokesman said: “The pilot returned to Inverness in line with our procedures and as a precaution only.
“We would like to apologise for any inconvenience as a result of the delay. The safety and wellbeing of our passengers and crew is easyJet’s highest priority.”
Scottish airports are facing their busiest weekend of the year as children finish up for the summer school holidays.
More than 375,000 passengers are expected to pass through the three largest airports between yesterday and Sunday.
Glasgow is expecting more than 180,000 over the weekend while Edinburgh will see 186,000 from yesterday and Aberdeen is gearing up for 11,700 on Saturday.
Glasgow Airport commercial director Francois Bourienne said: “The airport will be buzzing with activity this weekend now that the school holidays are under way.
“This weekend’s shaping up to be one of our busiest ever as our passengers take advantage of the wide variety of new routes and services on offer, including Lisbon, Valencia, Palanga, Iasi and Bergen.
“Given that the airport will be busier than usual, we would encourage passengers to allow enough time for check-in and to ensure they are prepared for the security area and have their boarding passes ready.”
Glasgow Airport will have additional staff at peak times over the weekend to provide support and
“This weekend’s shaping up to be one of our busiest ever”
assurance for passengers as they prepare for check-in and security.
Most of its travellers will be heading for sunshine hot spots such as Palma, Alicante, the Canary Islands, Crete, Canada and Florida.
Aberdeen expects passenger numbers only to be higher on the weekend of Offshore Europe in September, when 12,500 are anticipated in one day.