A WestJet flight bound from London, England to Edmonton was forced to make an unscheduled stop Saturday morning in Reykjavík, Iceland.
The airline said on Twitter that flight WS27 from Gatwick to EIA was diverted to Keflavík International Airport after crews detected a potential mechanical issue.
“WestJet confirms that they did divert their Edmonton bound London Gatwick flight to Reykjavik to address a potential mechanical issue,” EIA spokesperson Heather Hamilton told Global News.
After circling the airport a few times the flight landed normally, and all passengers and crews were reported to be safe.
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“The flight has landed normally,” WestJet spokesperson Lauren Stewart told Global News in an email.
“It is important to remember that the declaration of an emergency does not necessarily mean an actual emergency has occurred,” she added.
“It is declared to establish priority landing and to ensure the availability of emergency vehicles whether needed or not, and is a measure taken out of an abundance of caution.”
“All guests and crew will be taken care of until we arrange new flights,” the Calgary-based airline tweeted.
“We are currently making arrangements for hotels and meal vouchers. WestJet sincerely apologizes to our guests for the inconvenience and thanks them for their patience,” added Stewart.
Steward said the aircraft will remain in Iceland pending maintenance, and passengers would be reaccomodated as soon as possible.
Westjet told customers on Twitter that because they do not operate out of the airport, agents with Icelandair were helping on the ground.
WS27 was supposed to land at the Edmonton International Airport at 12:59 p.m. Saturday.
Anyone flying on the outbound flight later Saturday evening back to London is advised to check their flight status, as the airline said there is a possibility the flight could be affected.
More to come…
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