Emirates flight forced to divert to Heathrow after aborting three landings during Storm Katie

Storm Katie: the plane struggled to land in Manchester
Flightradar24
Hannah Al-Othman29 March 2016

An Emirates aircraft was forced to divert to Heathrow after it failed to land three times at Manchester Airport during Storm Katie.

The Emirates A380, which had flown eight hours from Dubai, had to divert almost 200 miles away after it abandoned three landings in Manchester on Easter Sunday.

The landing attempts took place over the space of an hour as rain and high winds battered the city.

Data recorded by Flightradar24.com shows that after flight EK-19 aborted two landings at 1,000ft, the huge aircraft circled the airport at 8,000ft five times before attempting to land again.

Diversion: the plane was forced to land at Heathrow (Flightradar24)
Flightrader24

After aborting the third landing at 1,050ft the plane was forced to divert to London Heathrow at about 6pm.

After landing successfully in London, passengers waited for two hours before returning to Manchester, where the plane eventually managed to land.

Passengers eventually arrived back in the city at 11.07pm, four hours later than scheduled.

Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, one passenger, who did not wish to be named, said: "The pilot had to make three attempts to land.

"Some of the passengers were in a bit of a state. The gusts were so strong at Manchester that people were starting to panic.

"The pilot came over the PA system and said he thought that the software was giving some incorrect readings."

A spokeswoman for Emirates said: "Emirates flight EK019 from Dubai to Manchester on 26 March, was diverted to London Heathrow due to weather conditions in Manchester.

"The safety of our passengers and crew is of utmost importance and will not be compromised."

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