Virgin Atlantic flight VS-3 made an emergency landing at Heathrow Airport, England, on January 17th.
The Airbus A330-300 plane took off for John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York, but had to turn back due to an oil quantity indication for one of the engines.
The plane landed back safely. All two hundred and forty-five passengers aboard remained safe.
Horizon Air flight QX-2794 had to return and make an emergency landing in Portland, Oregon, on April 28th.
The plane took off for Albuquerque, New Mexico, but had to return shortly afterwards due to smell of smoke in the cabin.
The plane landed back safely. All passengers and crew members remained safe.
What: Arik Air Boeing 737-700 en route from Owerri to Lagos
Where: Owerri Nigeria
When: May 8th 2011
Who: 69 passengers
Why: While en route, the plane incurred a bird strike. The bird was ingested in an engine. The flight continued until there were severe vibrations on the right side of the plane (where the strike occurred).
Passengers aboard the flight said they experienced five minutes of terror (that lasted forever) as the right side of the plane was vibrating. Presumably pilots shut down that engine after five minutes.
The pilots made a safe landing in Lagos.
Lufthansa flight LH-2286 had to make an emergency landing in Brussels, Belgium, on February 7th.
The Airbus A319-100 plane was flying from Munich, Germany, when the crew reported a strong oil smell on-board which caused headache, eye irritations, and dizziness.
The plane continued for a safe landing. The entire crew was taken to hospital.
Qantas flight QF-2164 had to return and make an emergency landing in Sydney, Australia, on June 19th.
The plane took off for Port Macquarie, Australia, but had to turn back due to a lightning strike.
The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.
Swiss International Air Lines flight LX-289 made an emergency landing in Johannesburg, South Africa, on January 1st.
The Airbus A340-300 plane took off for Zurich, Switzerland, but had to turn back due to issues with the weather radar.
The plane landed safely. There were two hundred and nineteen passengers aboard at the time; all of them remained safe.
Pictured: United Express (Mesa Airlines) Canadair CL-600-2B19 Regional Jet CRJ-200LR
Click to view full size photo at Airliners.net
Contact photographer Patrick Kane
What: United Airlines/Mesa Airlines Canadair CRJ-200 en route from Grand Rapids Chicago
Where: Grand Rapids
When: Dec 4th 2009
Who: 39 on board
Why: After takeoff, the flight experienced a hydraulics failure. The pilot returned the plane to the airport and made a safe landing.
