Under FAA JAA IKO rulings, it is mandated that if and when an emergency is declared by an airborne plane, ATC immediately diverts all incoming traffic and gives priority to the emergency situation. Most, if not all, of the events we have described as emergency are official emergencies. However, sometimes they are incorrectly reported as emergencies by our sources, have been downgraded from official emergency status, or are believed to be emergencies by passengers in fear for their lives.
Turkish Airlines flight TK-629 had to return and make an emergency landing in Istanbul, Turkey, on November 28th.
The Boeing 737-8 MAX plane took off for Accra, Ghana, but had to turn back due to a bird strike.
The plane landed back safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
British Airways flight BA-292 made an emergency landing at Shannon Airport, Ireland, on November 27th.
The plane heading from Washington Dulles International Airport, Virginia, to Heathrow Airport, England, was diverted after a woman went into labor.
The plane landed safely. The woman was rushed to a hospital.
UPS flight 5X-605 made an emergency landing in Louisville, Kentucky, on November 27th.
The Airbus A300-600 freighter plane took off from Chicago, Illinois, but the crew failed to retract the landing gear.
The crew continued to Louisville where they requested the longest runway. The plane subsequently landed safely. Everyone aboard remained unharmed.
Qatar Airways flight QR-24 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Vienna, Austria, on November 26th.
The plane heading from Manchester, England, to Doha, Qatar, was diverted due to an engine fire indication.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Delta Airlines flight DL-603 had to return and make an emergency landing in Mexico City, Mexico, on November 26th.
The Airbus A319-100 plane took off for Salt Lake City, Utah, but had to turn back due to an engine issue.
The plane landed back safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
American Airlines flight AA-6005 suffered a bird strike near Sacramento International Airport, California, on November 27th.
The incident happened when the plane flying from Los Angeles, California, was on final approach to Sacramento Airport.
The plane continued for a safe landing. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
JetBlue flight B6-1206 had to return and make an emergency landing at Portland International Airport, Oregon, on November 26th.
The plane took off for John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York, but had to turn back due to a bird strike.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
United Airlines flight UA-483 made an emergency landing in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on November 26th.
The Boeing 737-900 plane heading from Chicago, Illinois, to Phoenix, Arizona, was diverted due to an engine issue.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Pegas Fly flight IK-564 made an emergency landing in Kazan, Russia, on November 27th.
The plane heading from Orsk to Moscow, Russia, was diverted due to a technical issue.
The plane landed safely. All seventy-six passengers and five crew members remained unharmed.
Virgin Atlantic flight VS-16 made an emergency landing in Dublin, Ireland, on November 24th.
The plane heading from Orlando, Florida, to Gatwick Airport, England, was diverted after a passenger suffered a medical emergency.
The plane landed safely.
Allegiant Air flight G4-1819 had to return and make an emergency landing in Austin, Texas, on November 25th.
The Airbus A320-200 plane took off for Indianapolis, Indiana, but had to turn back after the crew noticed engine vibrations due to a possible bird strike.
The plane landed back safely. All one hundred and eighty-three people aboard remained unharmed.
Eva Air flight BR-27 made an emergency landing in San Francisco, California, on November 25th.
The Boeing 777-300 plane took off for Taipei, Taiwan, but had to turn back after a bird strike caused engine issues.
The plane landed back safely. All one hundred and eighty-seven people aboard remained unharmed.
ASL Airlines Belgium freight flight 3V-811 had to return and make an emergency landing in Liege, Belgium, on November 24th.
The Boeing 747-400 freighter plane took off for Jinan, China, but had to turn back after the engines ingested several birds.
The plane landed back safely. Everyone aboard remained unharmed.
Juneyao Airlines flight HO-1634 made an emergency landing in Guangzhou, China, on November 24th.
The Airbus A321-200 plane heading from Sanya to Nanjing, China, was diverted due to a cargo smoke indication.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
American Airlines flight AA-2666 had to return and make an emergency landing in Boston, Massachusetts, on November 24th.
The Boeing 737 MAX 8 plane took off for Miami, Florida, but had to turn back due to a bird strike.
The plane landed back safely. All one hundred and seventy-two passengers and six crew members remained unharmed.
WestJet Encore flight WR 3188 made an emergency landing at Lethbridge Airport in Alberta, Canada, on November 23rd.
The plane heading from Grande Prairie to Calgary, Canada, was diverted due to an instrument display issue.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
KLM flight KL-566 had to return and make an emergency landing in Nairobi, Kenya, on November 20th.
The Boeing 747-400 plane took off for Amsterdam, Netherlands, but had to turn back due to an engine failure.
The plane landed back safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Air New Zealand flight NZ-8262 made an emergency landing in Tauranga, New Zealand, on November 22nd.
The plane was flying from Wellington, New Zealand, when the crew needed to shut down one of the engines due to indication of a possible propeller issue.
The plane continued for a safe landing. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
IndiGo flight 6E 293 made an emergency landing in Port Blair, India, on November 20th.
The plane was flying from Hyderabad, India, when one of the engines malfunctioned, causing the plane to tilt to the other side.
The crew managed to level the plane and continued for a safe landing. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Singapore Airlines flight SQ-336 had to return and make an emergency landing in Singapore, on November 19th.
The Boeing 777-300 plane took off for Charles de Gaulle Airport, France, but had to turn back due to the loss of cabin pressure.
The plane landed safely. All two hundred and thirty-four passengers and seventeen crew members remained unharmed.
Vietjet flight VJ-198 made an emergency landing in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, on November 19th.
The Airbus A320-200 plane took off for Hanoi, Vietnam, but had to turn back due to indication of an issue with the fuel system.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
SpiceJet flight SG-1097 had to return and make an emergency landing at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad, India, on November 18th.
The plane took off for Tirupati, India, but had to return shortly afterwards due to a technical issue.
The plane landed back safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Delta Airlines flight DL-248 had to return and make an emergency landing in Salt Lake City, Utah, on November 17th.
The Boeing 767-300 plane took off for Charles de Gaulle Airport, France, but had to turn back due to a bird strike.
The plane landed back safely. All two hundred and twenty-three people aboard remained unharmed.
Flybondi flight FO-5101 made an emergency landing at El Palomar Airport in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on November 17th.
The Boeing 737-800 plane was flying from Cataratas del Iguazu International Airport, Argentina, when it suffered a loss of cabin pressure.
The plane continued for a safe landing. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Austrian Airlines flight OS-125 had to return and make an emergency landing in Vienna, Austria, on November 18th.
The Airbus A321-200 plane took off for Frankfurt, Germany, but had to turn back after a strong odor and smoke was noticed on-board.
The plane landed safely. The crew were taken to a hospital for precautionary examination.
