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.
Scandinavian Airlines flight SK-4437 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Trondheim, Norway, on December 20th.
The plane heading from Tromso to Oslo, Norway, was diverted after it lost cabin pressure.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Delta Airlines flight DL-2215 made an emergency landing in Seattle, Washington, on December 20th.
The Boeing 757-200 plane was heading to Honolulu, Hawaii, when the crew noticed smoke in the cabin and decided to return.
The plane landed safely. Everyone aboard remained safe.
El Al flight LY-30 had to make an emergency landing in Toronto, Canada, on December 20th.
The Boeing 767-300 plane took off for Tel Aviv, Israel, but had to turn back due to an engine failure.
The plane landed uneventfully. There were 224 people aboard at the time; all of them remained safe.
Germanwings flight 4U-24 had to return and make an emergency landing in Cologne, Germany, on December 20th.
The Airbus A319-100 plane took off for Berlin, Germany, but had to return shortly afterwards due to a landing gear issue.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Star Air flight S6-6565 had to make an emergency landing in Cologne, Germany, on December 20th.
The Boeing 767-300 cargo plane flying from East Midlands, England, United Kingdom, was descending toward Cologne when the crew declared an emergency due to an engine failure.
The plane landed uneventfully. Everyone aboard remained safe.
Braathens Regional Airways flight TF-29 had to return for an emergency landing in Gothenburg, Sweden, on December 20th.
The plane took off for Stockholm, Sweden, but had to turn back due to a gear problem.
The plane landed back safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Lufthansa flight LH-521 made an emergency landing in Munich, Germany, on December 19th.
The Airbus A340-600 plane flying from Mexico City, Mexico, was descending toward Munich when the crew received a deflated tire indication.
The emergency services were on standby as the plane landed safely. Everyone aboard remained safe.
Pakistan International Airlines flight PK-898 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Karachi, Pakistan, on December 19th.
The Airbus A310-300 plane heading from Lahore, Pakistan, to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, was diverted due to a hydraulic problem.
The plane landed safely. All 180 people aboard remained unharmed.
Aurora Airlines flight HZ-209 had to return for an emergency landing in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Russia, on December 19th.
The plane took off for Blagoveshchensk, Russia, but had to return shortly afterwards after the crew received an open door indication.
The plane landed back safely. All 50 passengers and 4 crew members remained unharmed.
KLM flight KL-1838 had to make an emergency landing in Amsterdam, Netherlands, on December 18th.
The Boeing 737-800 plane flying from Vienna, Austria, was on final approach when the crew reported a flaps problem.
The plane landed uneventfully. All 173 people aboard remained safe.
Thomson Airways flight BY-1718 made an emergency landing in Glasgow, United Kingdom, on December 18th.
The Boeing 757-200 plane took off for Tenerife–South Airport, Spain, but had to turn back after a burning odor was noticed on board.
The plane landed safely. Everyone aboard remained unharmed.
Delta Airlines flight DL-2274 had to return for an emergency landing in Atlanta, Georgia, on December 18th.
The plane took off for Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, but had to turn back after the right engine emitted a loud bang.
The crew had shut down the faulty engine before the plane landed back safely. All passengers and crew members remained safe.
Air Incheon flight KJ-711 made an emergency landing in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Russia, on December 18th.
The Boeing 737-400 freighter plane took off for Seoul, South Korea, but had to return shortly afterwards due to failure of the left engine.
The plane landed safely. All 3 crew members aboard remained unharmed.
Emirates Airlines flight EK-164 had to return for an emergency landing in Dublin, Ireland, on December 17th.
The Boeing 777-300 plane took off for Dubai, United Arab Emirates, but had to turn back due to a problem with a cargo door.
The plane landed back safely after dumping excess fuel. Everyone aboard remained safe.
Norwegian Air Shuttle flight DY-1348 had to divert and make an emergency landing in Stavanger, Norway, on December 16th.
The Boeing 737-800 plane heading from Oslo, Norway, to Manchester, United Kingdom, was diverted after the crew noticed smoke in cockpit.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained safe.
American Airlines flight AA-1129 had to make an emergency landing in Little Rock, Arkansas, on December 15th.
The McDonnell Douglas MD-82 plane was flying from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, Texas, to Indianapolis, Indiana, when a passenger’s e-cigarette overheated and started emitting smoke.
The crew diverted the plane to Little Rock where it landed safely.
All 137 people aboard remained unharmed.
Aerolineas Estelar flight E4-8362 made an emergency landing in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, on December 16th.
The Boeing 737-200 plane took off for Caracas, Venezuela, but had to turn back after the crew needed to shut down one of the engines due to a series of loud bangs.
The plane landed safely. Everyone aboard remained unharmed.
Allegiant Air flight G4-1671 had to return for an emergency landing at Chicago Rockford International Airport, Illinois, on December 15th.
The plane took off for Punta Gorda, Florida, but had to turn back after it ingested several birds into one of the engines.
The plane landed back safely. All 177 passengers and 6 crew members remained unharmed.
American Airlines flight AA-740 had to return and make an emergency landing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on December 15th.
The Airbus A330-200 plane took off for Madrid, Spain, but had to return shortly afterwards after the crew reported that a panel door was open.
The plane landed safely. Everyone aboard remained unharmed.
Southwest Airlines flight WN-105 had to return for an emergency landing in Chicago, Illinois, on December 15th.
The Boeing 737-800 plane took off for Las Vegas, Nevada, but had to return shortly afterwards after the crew reported a bird strike.
The plane landed safely. There were 164 passengers and 6 crew members aboard at the time; all of them remained unharmed.
The airline arranged a replacement plane for the passengers.
Spirit Airlines flight NK-927 had to return and make an emergency landing in Chicago, Illinois, on December 14th.
The Airbus A320-200 plane took off for Orlando, Florida, but had to turn back after the crew reported an engine issue.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Fedex Federal Express flight FX-3021 made an emergency landing at O’Hare International Airport, in Chicago, Illinois, on December 14th.
The plane was flying from Los Angeles, California, when the crew declared an emergency due to a slat disagree.
The plane landed safely at higher than normal speed. Everyone aboard remained unharmed.
American Airlines flight AA-9634 made an emergency landing in San Antonio, Texas, on December 13th.
The Embraer ERJ-190 plane took off for Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but had to turn back after the crew failed to retract the landing gear.
The plane landed safely. Everyone aboard remained unharmed.
Nepal Airlines flight RA-225 had to return and make an emergency landing in Kathmandu, Nepal, on December 13th.
The Boeing 757-200 plane took off for Bangalore, India, but had to turn back due to a hydraulic leak.
The plane landed safely. All 156 passengers and 8 crew members remained unharmed.
Aer Lingus flight EI-778 had to return for an emergency landing in Dublin, Ireland, on December 13th.
The plane took off for Lanzarote, Spain, but had to return shortly afterwards after the crew reported a technical issue.
The plane landed uneventfully. All 126 people aboard remained safe.
