A Ryanair plane from the UK has reportedly had to make an emergency landing in Portugal – the third incident in the space of just a fortnight.
The Boeing 737 with 202 passengers on board is said to have landed in Faro just after midday local time following the triggering of a ‘red code’ alert at the Algarve airport.
It was bound from London to Lisbon but had to divert after experiencing ‘technical problems’, according to local media reports.
The red alert reportedly led to 35 emergency response vehicles and nearly 80 responders including firefighters and civil protection workers being put on standby, although the plane landed safely.
Last Tuesday morning another Ryanair plane heading from Manchester to Tenerife South had to divert to the same airport amid another ‘red alert.’
And the Tuesday before that a Ryanair plane heading from London Stansted to Morocco landed at Faro in similar circumstances after the pilot fell ill.
A spokesman for Ryanair said after that incident: ‘This flight from Stansted to Morocco diverted to Faro when one of the pilots became ill.
‘The aircraft landed normally, and passengers were transferred to an alternative aircraft operated by another crew before continuing to Morocco.’
After last Tuesday’s diversion they said: ‘This flight from Manchester to Tenerife diverted to Faro due to a technical issue with the aircraft.
‘The aircraft landed normally, and the passengers disembarked. Engineers are checking this aircraft and a spare has been routed to operate this flight to Tenerife, which departed at 10:56am local time.
‘We apologise sincerely to affected passengers for this tech diversion, which was beyond Ryanair’s control.’
A spokesman said of the latest incident: ‘This flight from Stansted to Lisbon diverted to Faro due to a minor technical issue with the aircraft.
‘The aircraft landed normally, passengers disembarked and the aircraft was inspected by engineers.
‘To minimise disruption to passengers, Ryanair organised alternative transport for passengers to Lisbon which departed earlier this afternoon.’
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