A Stonehaven passenger has told of his “panic” after fumes filled up the cockpit on a flight from London to Aberdeen.
That’s after British Airways flight 1306 had to be diverted to Manchester due to a mid-air emergency this morning.
Now, Aberdeenshire passenger Dylan Bruce, 31, said that things felt “off from the start” before even getting on the plane.
His scepticism would turn out to be well-founded as the captain gave the shock announcement that gas was filling the cockpit and the rear of the aircraft.
We can now reveal that the pilot crew were even forced to wear oxygen masks while making an emergency diversion to Manchester
However, passengers was able to land safely in Manchester with no-one understood to be injured.
Dylan, speaking to the Press and Journal said that the situation “caused panic”.
He said: “My initial reaction was that I was just shocked. I was just thinking this thing may go up in flames.
“But luckily it didn’t come to that. It did cause a bit of panic though. It was nerve-wracking that’s for sure.”
Flight ‘felt off’ before emergency landing
Dylan also revealed that things “felt off from the start” even before the plane left the runway.
“We were on the flight and the pilots arrived late,” he continued.
“The food service wasn’t running as well so it was all a bit suspicious, no-one was able to go to the toilet either.
“When we were up in the air, the announcement was made that due to the smell of fumes, they had to make an emergency landing.
“That creates a bit of panic. Listen, no-one was shouting or screaming. The stewardess was doing her best to calm everyone down a bit.”
“There was also an announcement from the pilot, they said they said they had to wear oxygen masks while flying the plane.
“They said they smelt fumes while up in the air, and it was coming up from the front and back of the plane for whatever reason.
“He explained that they had to take emergency measures and land at Manchester.
“You could also see the fire brigade there waiting for the plane to land at Manchester Airport. You knew then it was serious.”
“Credit to them though, they did get the paramedics on the plane to give anyone assistance that might have been feeling light-headed.”
Scramble to rearrange travel plans to Aberdeen
Dylan also said he “was left to fend for himself” after exiting the plane.
He added: “Getting off the plane was shocking to be honest with you. We didn’t know what to do.
“We were off the plane and we got the bus back to the terminal, and then we all had to wing it.
“No-one really knew what to do – there were people trying to book buses and car-hire.
“We have just went away now and booked another flight now and we will have to claim compensation.
“We were left to fend for ourselves.”
A British Airways spokesperson said: “Our aircraft was diverted as a precaution because of a suspected technical issue.
“We’re sorry to our customers for the disruption to their journeys and our teams are working to get them on their way again as quickly as possible.”
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