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.
Lufthansa flight LH-762 had to return and make an emergency landing in Munich, Germany, on December 9th.
The Airbus A350-900 plane took off for Delhi, India, but had to turn back after one of the batteries failed.
The plane landed back safely. All two hundred and sixty-eight people aboard remained unharmed.
Norwegian Air Shuttle flight DY-1784 had to divert and make an emergency landing at Porto Santo Airport, Portugal, on December 9th.
The Boeing 737-800 plane heading from Oslo, Norway, to Funchal, Portugal, was diverted after the crew noticed a flaps problem.
The plane landed safely. All eighty-four people aboard remained unharmed.
United Airlines flight UA-1048 made an emergency landing in Newark, New Jersey, on December 8th.
The Boeing 737-900 plane took off for Cancun, Mexico, but had to turn back due to smoke in the cockpit.
The plane landed safely. There were one hundred and eighty-five people aboard at the time; all of them remained unharmed.
Ural Airlines flight U6-365 had to return and make an emergency landing in Saint Petersburg, Russia, on December 7th.
The Airbus A320-200 plane took off for Yekaterinburg, Russia, but had to turn back after the crew noticed disagreeing airspeeds.
The plane landed back safely. All one hundred and twenty-three passengers and six crew members remained unharmed.
Aeromexico flight AM-222 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Queretaro, Mexico, on December 6th.
The plane heading from Mexico City to Chihuahua, Mexico, was diverted due to a hydraulic leak.
The plane landed uneventfully. All passengers and crew members remained safe.
British Airways flight BA-288 had to return and make an emergency landing in Phoenix, Arizona, on December 6th.
The Boeing 747-400 plane took off for Heathrow Airport, England, but had to turn back after one of the engines stopped working.
The plane landed back safely. All two hundred and thirty-four people aboard remained unharmed.
Turkish Airlines flight TK-1899 suffered a lightning strike near Sabiha Gokçen International Airport in Istanbul, Turkey, on December 6th.
The incident happened shortly after the Boeing 737-800 plane departed for Vienna, Austria.
The crew subsequently returned to Sabiha Gokçen Airport. Everyone aboard remained safe.
Air New Zealand flight NZ-30 had to return and make an emergency landing in Auckland, New Zealand, on December 6th.
The Boeing 787-900 plane took off for Buenos Aires, Argentina, but had to turn back after the crew noticed an engine problem.
The plane landed uneventfully. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
AeroUnion flight 6R-301 made an emergency landing in Los Angeles, California, on December 5th.
The Boeing 767-200 freighter plane took off for Guadalajara, Mexico, however, during the initial climb, one of the engines started emitting heavy smoke.
The crew subsequently turned back and landed safely. No injuries were reported.
Yakutia Airlines flight R3-402 made an emergency landing in Yakutsk, Russia, on December 5th.
The plane was flying from Chersky, Russia, when the crew decided to shut down one of the engines due to an indication of dropping oil pressure.
The plane continued for a safe landing in Yakutsk.
All twenty-seven passengers and three crew members remained unharmed.
Air New Zealand flight NZ-99 had to return and make an emergency landing in Auckland, New Zealand, on December 5th.
The Boeing 787-900 plane took off for Narita International Airport, Japan, but had to turn back due to an engine problem.
The plane landed back safely. All two hundred and sixty-eight passengers and fourteen crew members remained unharmed.
Delta Airlines flight DL-1384 suffered a bird strike near Sacramento Airport, California, on December 4th.
The incident happened shortly after the Airbus A320-200 plane took off for Salt Lake City, Utah.
The plane subsequently returned to Sacramento.
All one hundred and fifty-two passengers and six crew members remained unharmed.
United Airlines flight UA-1549 made an emergency landing at O’Hare International Airport, Chicago, Illinois, on December 4th.
The Boeing 737-900 plane flying from Boston, Massachusetts, was descending toward Chicago when the crew noticed loss of thrust in both engines and declared an emergency.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Norwegian Air Shuttle flight DY-7147 made an emergency landing in Dublin, Ireland, on December 3rd.
The Boeing 787-900 plane heading from Gatwick Airport, England, to Boston, Massachusetts, was diverted due to a piece of luggage that belonged to a passenger who was not on the plane.
The plane landed safely.
Southwest Airlines flight WN-4046 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Los Angeles, California, on December 3rd.
The Boeing 737-700 plane heading from Sacramento to Santa Ana, California, was diverted due to a burning odor in the cabin.
The plane landed uneventfully. All one hundred and three passengers aboard remained safe.
Finnair flight AY-865 made an emergency landing in Turku, Finland, on December 3rd.
The plane heading from Helsinki, Finland, to Gothenburg, Sweden, was diverted after smell of smoke was noticed in the cabin.
The plane landed uneventfully and was evacuated via slides.
All passengers and crew members remained safe.
Delta Airlines flight DL-453 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Billings, Montana, on December 2nd.
The Boeing 757-200 plane heading from John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York, to Seattle, Washington, was diverted after all toilets stopped functioning.
The plane landed safely. Everyone aboard remained unharmed.
United Airlines flight UA-459 made an emergency landing in Los Angeles, California, on December 1st.
The Airbus A320-200 plane heading from Denver, Colorado, to San Diego, California, was diverted after the crew noticed a hydraulic leak.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Lufthansa flight LH-492 made an emergency landing at Manchester Airport, England, on December 1st.
Authorities said the plane heading from Frankfurt, Germany, to Vancouver, Canada, was diverted due to a medical emergency.
A Lufthansa spokesperson said, “It turned out that there was a medical incident on board; thus one passenger plus a travel partner was taken to hospital.”
Lufthansa flight LH-440 had to return and make an emergency landing in Frankfurt, Germany, on December 1st,
The Airbus A380-800 plane took off for Houston, Texas, but had to turn back after the crew noticed loss of engine oil.
The plane landed back safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Turkish Airlines flight 606 had to make an emergency landing at Khartoum International Airport, Sudan, on November 30th.
The plane heading from Nairobi, Kenya, to Cairo, Egypt, was diverted after a passenger reported a bomb threat.
The plane landed uneventfully. Everyone aboard remained safe.
It is believed that the bomb scare was caused due to an on-board wi-fi network called “bomb on board”.
Southwest Airlines flight WN-1111 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Las Vegas, Nevada, on November 30th.
The Boeing 737-700 plane heading from Phoenix, Arizona, to Reno, Nevada, was diverted after the crew reported a hydraulic failure.
The plane landed uneventfully. All one hundred and seventeen people aboard remained safe.
Korean Air flight KE-51 made an emergency landing in Seoul, South Korea, on November 29th.
The Airbus A330-300 plane took off for Honolulu, Hawaii, but had to turn back after the crew noticed a cabin pressure problem.
The plane landed uneventfully. All one hundred and twenty-eight passengers aboard remained safe.
Southwest Airlines flight WN-158 had to return and make an emergency landing in Sacramento, California, on November 29th.
The Boeing 737-700 plane took off for Seattle, Washington, but had to return shortly afterwards due to a bird strike.
The plane landed back safely All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Air New Zealand flight NZ-5255 made an emergency landing at Palmerston North Airport, New Zealand, on November 29th.
The plane heading from Tauranga to Wellington, New Zealand, was diverted after an electrical odor was noticed in the cabin.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
