An Air Canada flight from London Heathrow Airport to Toronto declared a mid-air emergency shortly after departure. The incident occurred when Flight AC853, which took off at 8:34 am on Saturday, reached an altitude of 34,000 feet over the Atlantic. Within an hour of takeoff, the crew signaled an emergency by transmitting a Squawk 7700 code to air traffic control.
The Boeing 777-300ER aircraft veered off its transatlantic course, turning back towards Heathrow Airport. Emergency services were placed on standby as a precautionary measure. The specific nature of the emergency has not been officially confirmed by Air Canada, as emergency alerts can indicate various issues such as technical malfunctions or medical emergencies.
Data tracking revealed that the aircraft initiated its return to London shortly after reaching cruising altitude at approximately 09:15 BST, descending back towards the airport. The plane safely landed on runway 27L at around 10:02 BST, prompting a brief suspension of landings on the south runway at Heathrow.
Passengers were safely escorted back to the terminal after the aircraft taxied to the gate under the supervision of emergency vehicles. Despite the emergency landing, no injuries were reported. Air Canada is working on rescheduling the disrupted service, with a replacement departure planned for later in the morning.
Throughout the incident, Heathrow emergency crews remained on standby in adherence to standard protocols for aircraft emergencies. The airline and airport authorities are expected to conduct a review of the incident, providing further details in due course.