Thomson emergency landing: ‘This is not a drill’ warning
A flight carrying 200 people had to make an emergency landing at Cardiff as the pilot warned, ‘this is not a drill’.
The plane, full of holidaymakers returning from Tenerife on Saturday, suffered problems with the landing flaps, used to reduce the speed and shorten landing distances.
Cabin crew told passengers to remove shoes and glasses and those sitting next to the emergency exit were told ‘ you may need to open this but not if the wing is on fire’, reports Wales Online.
But the plane landed ‘hard and fast’ 20 metres from the end of the runway with no passenger injuries.
"Thomson Airways can confirm that flight TOM6555 travelling from Tenerife to Cardiff experienced a technical issue," a spokeswoman said.
"Following standard procedure, Cardiff air traffic control contacted the emergency services to meet the flight. The aircraft landed safely and all passengers disembarked the flight normally."
The emergency landing led to other Thomson flights being disrupted.
The operator was criticised by more than 300 holidaymakers left stranded for 13 hours in a Spanish airport as a result.
Passengers said many children spent the night sleeping on baggage trolleys at Mahon airport and criticised Thomson’s communication and planning despite knowing about the emergency landing at Cardiff.
Thomson said the flight was one of a number of planes to be delayed or cancelled because of a ‘knock-on effect’ following the emergency.
A spokesperson for the company said: "Thomson Airways would like to apologise for the inconvenience caused to customers travelling on flight TOM2657 from Menorca to Manchester, which was delayed due to a number of factors.
"As a result of a technical issue and mandatory crew rest restrictions, an alternative aircraft was sourced as quickly as possible and we did all we could to assist our passengers at Mahon airport. Customers arrived back in the UK after the aircraft landed at Manchester airport at 10.12am (UK time) on Sunday 20th September.
"We would like to reassure customers that delays of this nature are extremely rare."
Diane
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