A US military aircraft reversed course after apparently declaring an emergency and touched down at Cardiff Airport. The USAF C-130H Hercules was monitored travelling westwards over the Atlantic before abruptly turning back for undisclosed reasons, landing at 1.15pm.
It is believed the aircraft transmitted a 7700 code, signalling a general emergency, though the cause remains unclear at this stage. Cardiff Airport serves as a frequent stopover location for the United States military. It maintains a refuelling agreement with the US department of defence and has an extended runway which can accommodate large military cargo aircraft.
The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft manufactured in the United States by Lockheed Martin. Built to transport troops, cargo and casualties for medical evacuation, the plane is capable of taking off and landing on rough, unprepared airstrips, reports the Mirror.
Travellers at Cardiff Airport reported seeing police and other emergency crews this afternoon at the time of the incident. One person wrote on social media that it "was like wacky races at Culverhouse Cross with all emergency services."
When a pilot inputs the four-digit emergency code 7700 into their transponder, it immediately notifies air traffic control that the aircraft is in difficulty and requires priority assistance. The precise nature of the incident remains uncertain, as it serves as a "catch-all" for any emergency situation that isn't a hijacking (7500) or radio failure (7600).
It follows an incident in which a US military aircraft declared an emergency while flying from Israel to a British airbase. The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, which departed Ben Gurion Airport on March 29 bound for RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk, is thought to have encountered a hydraulic problem, according to an aircraft-tracking account on X. The crew broadcast a Squawk 7700 signal off the Norfolk coastline, where flight information suggests the tanker executed multiple circuits. The aircraft seems to have been disposing of surplus fuel before touchdown. The crew allegedly sought a diversion to London Heathrow Airport owing to its extended runway, before the aircraft touched down safely at Mildenhall.
