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.
Air France flight AF-953 made an emergency landing in Douala, Cameroon, on November 28th.
The Airbus A340-300 plane took off for Charles de Gaulle Airport, France, but had to turn back after the crew needed to shut down one of the engines.
The plane landed uneventfully. Everyone aboard remained safe.
Transavia flight HV-6845 had to return and make an emergency landing in Amsterdam, Netherlands, on November 28th.
The Boeing 737-800 plane took off for Boa Vista, Cape Verde, but had to turn back due to a lightning strike.
The plane landed back safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Austrian Airlines flight OS-474 made an emergency landing at EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg, France, on November 28th.
The plane took off for Vienna, Austria, but had to return shortly afterwards due to a burning odor in the cabin.
The plane landed back safely. All forty-two passengers and four crew members remained unharmed.
United Airlines flight UA-2 made an emergency landing at Narita International Airport, Japan, on November 28th.
The Boeing 787-900 plane was heading from Singapore to San Francisco, California, when it encountered turbulence twice, causing injuries to two crew members.
The crew subsequent diverted to Narita International Airport.
The plane landed safely. The injured were taken to a hospital.
United Airlines flight UA-828 had to return and make an emergency landing in Guam, on November 27th.
The Boeing 777-200 plane took off for Narita International Airport, Japan, but had to turn back after the crew noticed an engine problem.
The plane landed uneventfully. All passengers and crew members remained safe.
Cayman Airways flight KX-792 had to return and make an emergency landing at Owen Roberts International Airport in Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, on November 26th.
The Boeing 737-300 plane took off for John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York, but had to turn back due to issues with cabin pressurization system.
The plane landed uneventfully. All one hundred and twenty-one people aboard remained unharmed.
Transavia flight HV-5951 had to return and make an emergency landing in Amsterdam, Netherlands, on November 26th.
The Boeing 737-800 plane took off for Lisbon, Portugal, but had to turn back due to a lightning strike.
The plane landed back safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Ryanair flight FR-2905 made an emergency landing in Brussels, Belgium, on November 26th.
The Boeing 737-800 plane flying from Malta was on final approach to Brussels when the crew reported an issue with the flaps and went around.
The plane landed safely on second approach. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Avianca Brazil flight O6-6065 had to return and make an emergency landing in Brasilia, Brazil, on November 26th.
The Airbus A320-200 plane took off for Sao Paulo–Congonhas Airport, Brazil, but had to turn back due to cabin pressure problems.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Eurowings flight EW-8100 made an emergency landing in Brussels, Belgium, on November 26th.
The Airbus A320-200 plane flying from Berlin Tegel Airport, Germany, was on final approach to Brussels when the crew noticed an engine failure.
The plane landed safely. Everyone aboard remained unharmed.
United Airlines flight UA-31 had to divert and make an emergency landing at Heathrow Airport, England, on November 26th.
The Boeing 767-300 plane heading from Munich, Germany, to Newark, New Jersey, was diverted after several passengers complained of nausea and Lightheadedness.
The plane landed safely. Medical services attended to the passengers.
GETJET Airlines flight GJT-101 made an emergency landing in Vilnius, Lithuania, on November 25th.
The Boeing 737-400 plane took off for Hurghada, Egypt, but had to turn back after the crew received indication of a landing gear problem.
The plane landed back safely. All one hundred and sixty people aboard remained unharmed.
Qantas flight QF-2179 suffered a bat strike near Coffs Harbour Airport, Australia, on November 24th.
The plane flying from Port Macquarie, Australia, was on final approach to Coffs Harbour Airport when a bat hit it.
The plane continued for a safe landing. Everyone aboard remained unharmed.
Atlas Air flight 5Y-9413 had to return and make an emergency landing in Hong Kong, China, on November 23rd.
The Boeing 747-400 freighter plane took off for Narita International Airport, Japan, but had to turn back after the crew received an engine overheat indication.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
KLM Cityhopper flight KL-981 made an emergency landing in Amsterdam, Netherlands, on November 23rd.
The Embraer ERJ-190 plane took off for London City Airport, England, but had to return after the crew noticed smell of smoke in the cabin.
The plane landed back uneventfully. All passengers and crew members remained safe.
United Airlines flight UA-5541 had to return and make an emergency landing in San Francisco, California, on November 22nd.
The plane took off for Redmond, Oregon, but had to return shortly afterwards due to a bird strike.
The plane landed safely. Everyone aboard remained safe.
IndiGo flight 6E-719 made an emergency landing at Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi, India, on November 22nd.
The Airbus A320-200 plane took off for Visakhapatnam, India, but had to turn back after the crew noticed smoke in the cockpit.
The plane landed safely. All one hundred and seventy people aboard remained unharmed.
Alitalia flight AZ-631 had to divert and make an emergency landing in St. John’s, Canada, on November 22nd.
The Airbus A330-200 plane heading from Miami, Florida, to Rome Fiumicino Airport, Italy, was diverted due to a mechanical issue.
The plane landed uneventfully. All passengers and crew members remained safe.
Frontier Airlines flight F9-1686 made an emergency landing in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on November 22nd.
The Airbus A320-200 plane heading from Las Vegas, Nevada, to Nashville, Tennessee, was diverted after the crew noticed an odor in the cockpit.
The plane landed safely. All one hundred and seventy-eight passengers and six crew members remained unharmed.
Jet Airways flight 9W-2074 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Ahmedabad, India, on November 21st.
The Boeing 737-800 plane heading from Udaipur to Mumbai, India, was diverted due to a cargo smoke indication.
The plane landed safely. All one hundred and eleven passengers aboard remained unharmed.
British Airways flight BA-39 made an emergency landing at Heathrow Airport, England, on November 21st.
The Boeing 787-900 plane took off for Beijing, China, but had to turn back after an electrical fire sparked in the cabin.
The fire had been extinguished before the plane landed back.
No injuries were reported.
FedEx Express flight FX-1352 had to return and make an emergency landing in Denver, Colorado, on November 21st.
The Airbus A300-600 plane took off for Memphis, Tennessee, but had to return shortly afterwards due to an engine failure.
The plane landed uneventfully. Everyone aboard remained safe.
Transavia flight HV-6915 made an emergency landing in Amsterdam, Netherlands, on November 21st.
The Boeing 737-700 plane took off for Olbia, Italy, but had to turn back due to an issue with the air conditioning system.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Eurowings flight EW-20 had to return and make an emergency landing at Cologne Bonn Airport, Germany, on November 20th.
The Airbus A319-100 plane took off for Berlin Tegel Airport, Germany, but had to return shortly afterwards due to an air conditioning problem.
The plane landed safely. Everyone aboard remained unharmed.
Lufthansa flight LH-453 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Chicago, Illinois, on November 20th.
The Airbus A340-600 plane heading from Los Angeles, California, to Munich, Germany, was diverted after the crew noticed a temperature control problem in the cabin.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
