An easyJet flight from Cyprus to Glasgow was diverted to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport on Tuesday after a passenger reportedly required urgent CPR. The Airbus A320, operating as Flight U23170 from Larnaca Airport, emitted a general emergency squawk code 7700 around four hours into the journey.
Emergency landing at Schiphol
The plane was cruising at 38,000ft over the North Sea when the decision was made to land in the Netherlands. By setting the transponder to squawk code 7700, the captain informed air traffic control that an immediate emergency landing was required.
Priority was given to the easyJet plane as it came in to land and, following a rapid descent, it touched down on Runway 06 just 22 minutes after the distress call was made. It was met by paramedics after it taxied to Gate D60, reports Airlive.
Recent similar incident
The Mirror has contacted easyJet for comment. Last month, an American Airlines flight declared a mid-air emergency and diverted to Heathrow Airport with paramedics rushing to meet the plane.
Pilots on the New York-bound flight made the call to land at the London airport after a person became seriously ill around six hours into the journey from Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi. The incident unfolded at 36,000ft on Flight AA293, operated by a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, with a map from Flightradar24 showing the plane suddenly veering north as it approached Italy.
It is understood the plane descended to 30,000ft and the pilots considered landing at Munich Airport in Germany, but then they decided to return to 36,000ft and head to London. The jet touched down safely on Runway 27L at Heathrow at 4:15am on September 18, with paramedics helping the passenger who had become unwell.
