According to a passenger, a flight attendant stated that the pilot had fainted. According to a Jet2 spokesperson, the landing was a “precautionary measure” for an ailing pilot.
According to reports, a jet made an emergency landing after a pilot fainted at 30,000 feet, with the co-pilot taking over in the cockpit.
According to Birmingham Live, a Jet2 flight from Birmingham, England, bound for Antalya, Turkey, was forced to make an emergency landing in Thessaloniki, Greece, on Tuesday after a passenger reported that the pilot passed out during the ordeal, which began with turbulence.
While we were all [seated] we noticed something was going on at the front of the plane,” the unnamed passenger told Birmingham Live. “We thought someone had hurt themselves in the toilet while experiencing turbulence. We were told we were landing in Greece due to a medical emergency on board. We weren’t told what part.”
The passenger added: “People were worried as we’d just been through turbulence and we didn’t know what was happening.”
The traveller told Birmingham Live that their arrival was delayed by eight hours, during which time their family of four received vouchers for meals worth 60 ($59.79). They claimed they would not be compensated because Jet2 does not cover delays caused by medical emergencies.
A Jet2 spokesperson told Insider: “Flight LS1239 from Birmingham to Antalya diverted to Thessaloniki Airport as a precautionary measure on Tuesday (August 23) due to one of the pilots feeling unwell. A replacement crew were flown to Thessaloniki so that we could get customers on their way to Antalya that same evening.”
“We communicated this to our customers as soon as possible, and our teams worked extremely hard to look after everyone. We would like to apologize to anyone affected by this unforeseen delay.”
Pilot welfare is becoming increasingly important as shortages grip the industry and put their endurance to the test.
According to the Aviation Herald, an Ethiopian Airlines flight missed its descent last week after both pilots fell asleep in the air.
Regulators are looking into other airlines, such as WizzAir, because there are concerns that they are encouraging pilots to fly while tired and take on extra trips.
