Passengers on a TUI flight were “thrown out of their seats” after turbulence began and they heard two loud bangs while traveling from the UK to Cape Verde, an island paradise in the Atlantic Ocean.
Strong aftershocks occurred just 10 minutes later after the plane took off from Manchester Airport in Cape Verde last Monday. The aircraft circled the Peak District National Park for more than two hours before landing safely at a UK airport. During this time, panic began on board. “The children were screaming and people were panicking, it was really scary,” an Express airline employee quoted as saying.
“When I saw the two flight attendants look at each other, I knew something was wrong. The turbulence was really strong, there was one really terrible moment when everyone was thrown out of their seats. The pilot and staff acted fantastically, they told us what was happening and walked around the plane asking if people wanted water,” one of the tourists recalled the fateful flight.
Another traveler added to the overall picture with his story: “We went through check-in and security checks … The plane was delayed for an hour, but everything went smoothly. We boarded the plane and it was very warm, the staff told us that the plane was in Turkey the night before and there was a problem with the air conditioner. They said that as soon as we took off, everything would be fine.
About 10 minutes into the flight, we heard two huge bangs, and when I looked out the window, I saw something orange flying past. My wife thought it was a bird.
Before we landed, the pilot spoke again to say that he had burnt the fuel and we could make an emergency landing. He said that all emergency services would be waiting for us at the airfield at Manchester Airport and that all the warning lights on the plane were on.
After discovering a technical problem, the pilots sent an emergency code and eventually the tourists were returned to Manchester . The plane never made it to the paradise island that the flight passengers hoped to get to. As soon as the travelers got off the plane, the tour operator TUI apologized for the failure.
In an email sent to passengers on the flight, the airline said: “We are truly sorry for the disruption to your flight today, we understand that this will be a disappointment. Your aircraft was serviceable and took off as expected, however shortly after your flight the captain encountered a technical problem.
The safety of our customers and crew is paramount and he had to make the difficult decision to return to Manchester Airport. Due to landing restrictions, the captain had to circle in the sky for a while to burn off the fuel and land safely back to Manchester.
It was clarified that the tour operator soon arranged an alternative flight for those who still want to go on vacation . Travelers were placed in a hotel and received a voucher for 15 pounds (9,500 rubles) to pay for soft drinks at the airport.
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