British Airways flight BA919 from Dusseldorf was seconds from disaster over Canary Wharf on Monday July 6, according to reports. The pilot reportedly faced a terrifying moment while the plane was above Canary Wharf as it approached Heathrow Airport.
The first officer's error required a physical intervention by the captain as the Airbus A320 was on route to land at Heathrow. The jet suffered a stall and the captain had to override the first officer's initial input to try and fix the problem.
Experts told The Sun the situation could have resulted in 'hull loss', where an aircraft is destroyed or seriously damaged. They added it was "The most serious 'near miss' in the UK in years".
Investigation and Aftermath
Following the incident, the captain is now understood to be on "stress leave".
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) is investigating the serious incident. The AAIB is an independent agency responsible for investigating civil aircraft accidents and serious incidents in the UK and its Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
A British Airways spokesperson said: "We're assisting the AAIB with its investigation and are legally unable to comment further at this stage."
