- A Jet2 plane made an emergency landing in Greece on Tuesday on a flight from England to Turkey.
- A passenger told Birmingham Live that a flight attendant said the pilot had fainted.
- A Jet2 spokesperson told Insider the landing was a “precautionary measure” for an unwell pilot.
A jet made an emergency landing after a pilot was said to have fainted at 30,000 feet, with the co-pilot taking over in the cockpit, according to reports.
Birmingham Live reported that a Jet2 flight from Birmingham, England bound for Antalya, Turkey was forced to make an emergency landing in Thessaloniki, Greece, on Tuesday after a passenger was told the pilot passed out in an ordeal that began with a bout of turbulence.
“While we were all [seated] we noticed something was going on at the front of the plane,” the unnamed passenger told Birmingham Live. “We thought someone had hurt themselves in the toilet while experiencing turbulence. We were told we were landing in Greece due to a medical emergency on board. We weren’t told what part.”
The passenger added: “People were worried as we’d just been through turbulence and we didn’t know what was happening.”
The traveller told Birmingham Live their arrival was delayed by eight hours, during which time their family of four received vouchers worth €60 ($59.79) for meals. They said they would not receive compensation as Jet2 doesn’t cover delays caused by a medical emergency.
A Jet2 spokesperson told Insider: “Flight LS1239 from Birmingham to Antalya diverted to Thessaloniki Airport as a precautionary measure on Tuesday (August 23) due to one of the pilots feeling unwell. A replacement crew were flown to Thessaloniki so that we could get customers on their way to Antalya that same evening.”
“We communicated this to our customers as soon as possible, and our teams worked extremely hard to look after everyone. We would like to apologise to anyone affected by this unforeseen delay.”
Pilot welfare is increasingly coming into focus as shortages grip the industry and test their endurance.
Last week, the Aviation Herald reported that an Ethiopian Airlines flight missed its descent after both pilots fell asleep in the air.
Other airlines such as WizzAir have been investigated by regulators amid fears they are encouraging pilots to fly while tired and take on extra trips.
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