Ryanair flight forced to divert to UK after mid-air emergency as ‘passengers hurt’

The turbulence injured a number of people

The Boeing 737 MAX took off from Birmingham Airport at around 2.50pm on Sunday (28 December), but issued a 7700 squawk over Brittany, France, after climbing to 35,000ft.

Squawk 7700 is the universal aviation code for a General Emergecy, signaling to Air Traffic Control (ATC) that an aircraft needs immediate, priority assistance due to severe issues like engine failure, fire, or critical medical problems.

The turbulence occurred while cabin service was in progress, causing injuries to a number of people. The flight turned around and descended to an altitude of 10,000 feet (FL100), according to passengers who spoke for The Aviation Herald.

About and hour and 32 minutes after departing the plane managed to land safely back at Birmingham.

As per AirLive, the plane was parked on a remote stand of the airport, in order for the passengers to receive assistance from paramedics.

“FR1121 from Birmingham to Tenerife on 28th December returned to Birmingham Airport shortly after take-off due to air turbulence. The aircraft landed normally before passengers disembarked and returned to the terminal, where a small number of passengers were provided with medical assistance. This flight continued to Tenerife at 21:06 local”, Ryanair told the Mirror on Sunday night.

Earlier this month, on December 4 an onboard emergency forced a United Airlines flight bound for San Francisco from London to divert to Edinburgh.

United Airlines told the Mirror that a burning smell inside the airplane forced the diversion, as it added that “they provided customers with hotel accommodations and rebooked them on other flights to their destinations.”