A technical issue on a British Airways flight caused it to rapidly descend 27,000 feet before returning to London Heathrow Airport on Oct. 5 for an emergency landing.
The passenger jet had departed Heathrow at 11:50 a.m. local time and was about 30 minutes into its approximately eight-hour journey to Chicago O'Hare International Airport when it dropped from 36,000 feet to 9,000 feet in less than 10 minutes, according to FlightAware.
Flight map data shows the Boeing 777-200 turn around over Ireland and fly in circles for a few hours before heading back toward London. It then returned to Heathrow, where it landed safely at around 5 p.m.
"The safety of our customers and crew is
always our top priority, and the aircraft landed safely after our highly-trained pilots returned to Heathrow following a technical issue," said British Airways in a statement. The airline did not specify the issue.
Passengers disembarked normally and the airline said it is assisting them in rebooking their travel plans.
In September, a Delta Air Lines flight from Los Angeles International Airport to Salt Lake City International Airport was diverted to Las Vegas' Harry Reid International Airport due to a pressurization issue. Over the course of 10 minutes, the plane dropped around 27,000 feet and oxygen masks were deployed.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: A transatlantic flight plunged 27,000 feet and returned to London
