British Airways flight lands safely at Heathrow after 28,000-foot emergency descent

A British Airways flight bound for Chicago landed safely at London Heathrow on Monday after declaring an emergency over Ireland, rapidly descending around 28,000 feet and spending several hours at low altitude before returning to the airport. 

Flight BA295, operated by a Boeing 777-200ER registered G-VIIA, touched down at Heathrow shortly after 5pm local time. There were no immediate reports of injuries. 

Reports from the scene said three helicopters accompanied the aircraft during the final stages of its return towards Heathrow, while a number of ambulances and police vehicles were reported at the airport as emergency services prepared for its arrival.

Those details had not been independently confirmed by British Airways or Heathrow at the time of publication.

The flight had departed Heathrow at around 11:50am for Chicago O’Hare before climbing to around 37,000 feet.

While crossing Ireland, the aircraft suddenly descended to approximately 9,000 feet and transmitted the emergency transponder code 7700, which signals a general emergency. It then abandoned its transatlantic journey and turned back towards Britain. 

Flight-tracking data subsequently showed the aircraft spending hours at around 9,000 feet, flying repeated holding patterns over southern England and the English Channel before approaching Heathrow.

The prolonged flight at low altitude may have allowed the Boeing 777 to burn fuel and reduce its landing weight before touchdown, although British Airways has not confirmed that this was the reason for the extended holding. 

Aviation reports said the aircraft had lowered its landing gear during part of the holding period, which would have increased drag and accelerated fuel consumption.

British Airways said the aircraft returned because of a “technical issue,” but the airline had not disclosed the precise nature of the problem. 

The steep descent from cruising altitude to 9,000 feet is consistent with procedures that can be used following a cabin pressurisation problem, though there has been no official confirmation that depressurisation caused the emergency.

The 7700 code is an internationally recognised transponder signal used to alert air traffic controllers to a general emergency and does not specify the nature of the problem.

Monday’s incident came days after another dramatic aviation emergency involving flydubai Flight FZ1073, travelling from Dubai to Tel Aviv on September 30.

That Boeing 737 descended more than 16,000 feet in roughly 35 seconds during an onboard crisis. Authorities said the co-pilot attacked the captain and allegedly attempted to take control of the aircraft before passengers and off-duty pilots intervened.

The flydubai aircraft eventually landed safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.

Flight-tracking data showed FZ1073 transmitting 7700 before briefly switching to 7500 — the international code for unlawful interference with an aircraft — and later returning to 7700 before landing.

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