British Airways BA295 lands back at Heathrow after 28,000 foot emergency descent over Ireland
A British Airways aircraft. (Image courtesy: Wikimedia Commons.)
New Delhi: British Airways flight BA295 declared a general emergency over Ireland on Monday after descending from around 37,000 feet to about 9,000 feet while flying from London Heathrow to Chicago O’Hare. The Boeing 777-200ER then turned back towards Britain and later landed at Heathrow, with the cause of the emergency still unknown.
The aircraft departed Heathrow’s Terminal 5 at about 11.55am BST and climbed to about 37,000 feet before the emergency developed over Ireland roughly an hour into the flight. Its transponder showed 7700 during the incident, after which BA295 descended to around 9,000 feet and reversed course rather than continuing across the Atlantic.
Flight tracking data showed the aircraft descending from about 37,000 feet to around 9,000 feet, a loss of roughly 28,000 feet. The service was operated by Boeing 777-200ER G-VIIA, and tracking records later confirmed its diversion back to Heathrow and landing there.
What does 7700 mean?
Code 7700 is the internationally recognized transponder code for a general aviation emergency and alerts air traffic control that an aircraft requires priority assistance. It does not identify the nature of the emergency.
The code is distinct from 7500, which is associated with unlawful interference or hijacking. BA295’s 7700 transmission therefore establishes that the crew had declared an emergency but provides no evidence about what caused it.
British Airways had not publicly identified the cause at publication time. The rapid descent alone cannot establish whether the incident involved a technical, medical or other operational problem, and there were no immediate official details on the condition of passengers and crew.
The BA295 emergency came five days after Flydubai flight FZ1073, operating from Dubai to Tel Aviv, was diverted to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, following an attack inside the cockpit. The UAE attorney general later said investigators found that the copilot attacked the captain with a crash axe and attempted to seize the flight controls as part of an attempted terrorist act. There is no indication that the two incidents are connected.
Further official information is awaited on what prompted the BA295 emergency and arrangements for passengers whose journey to Chicago was interrupted.
