Easyjet passengers had a fright shortly after take-off yesterday when their London-bound plane suffered an engine problem and had to turn back to Malta six minutes into the flight.
It was a bit of a fright
The aircraft, carrying 159 passengers, was met on the runway by fire engines deployed as a precaution by Malta International Airport.
Easyjet’s corporate affairs manager Andrew McConnell said the London Gatwick-bound plane returned due to a “technical issue”.
“The captain took the decision to return to Malta and shut down one engine as a precaution only,” Mr McConnell said.
He requested assistance on the ground “in line with procedures”.
The engine was briefly inspected on the runway by a fire team before the aircraft taxied away and the runway reopened.
All the passengers disembarked and were taken to the departures lounge in two buses.
Among them was Hubert Paul Farrugia, 25, who said he heard the usual noise of the landing gear retracting a few minutes after the 12.30pm take-off. But as the noise seemed to grow louder, the captain announced that the aircraft had technical issues and would have to return to Malta.
Although everyone on board remained calm, “it was a bit of a fright”, Mr Farrugia said. Once back on the ground, the passengers were kept in the departures area around gates 11 to 15.
At around 2pm they were informed they would be delayed for “at least five hours” and were each given a refreshments voucher valued at €4.50.
Mr Farrugia, who was heading to the UK for his graduation, said the atmosphere among passengers at that point was one of weary acceptance.
After the aircraft was inspected, Easyjet made the decision to fly another aircraft to Malta to take the passengers to Gatwick. Mr McConnell could not confirm if the stricken aircraft would undergo full repairs in Malta.
At mid-afternoon yesterday, the Gatwick airport website was projecting that the flight would land at 10pm – more than seven hours behind schedule.
“We would like to apologise to the affected passengers for any inconvenience,” Mr McConnell said.