Edinburgh Airport: EasyJet flight to Iceland forced to land in Edinburgh after declaring mid-air alert

An issue was identified on the plane as it made its way from London to Akureyri

An EasyJet flight was forced to divert to Edinburgh on Tuesday after declaring a mid-air alert.

Flight EZY8849 was travelling from London Gatwick to Akureyri, in Iceland, having taken off shortly before 7.30am. The plane was due to arrive at around 12.45pm, but after issuing a mid-air alert near the Faroe Islands, it made a U-turn and later touched down in Edinburgh Airport at 10:03am.

According to EasyJet, the disruption was due to a technical issue.

An EasyJet flight was forced to divert to Edinburgh on Tuesday after declaring a mid-air alert.

A spokesperson for the airline told the Scottish Sun: EasyJet can confirm that flight EZY8849 from London Gatwick to Akureyri on 14 November diverted to Edinburgh due to a technical issue. The captain performed a routine landing in accordance with standard operating procedures. Once at its stand engineers inspected the aircraft and it has now continued to Akureyri.

“We would like to apologise to all passengers for any inconvenience caused by the diversion and subsequent delay. The safety of its passengers and crew is EasyJet's highest priority and EasyJet operates its fleet of aircraft in strict compliance with all manufacturers’ guidelines.”