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Smell of ‘used socks' why BA flight made u-turn back to Gatwick

Smell of ‘used socks' why BA flight made u-turn back to Gatwick

Independent7 hours ago
On Tuesday, 15 July, a British Airways flight (BA2203) from London Gatwick to Cancun was forced to return to the airport shortly after take-off due to a strong "smell of used socks" that caused dizziness among the crew.
The Boeing 777 circled for approximately 30 minutes before landing safely back at Gatwick, where it was met by emergency services.
British Airways confirmed a technical issue led to the diversion, apologised for the disruption, and provided passengers with overnight hotel accommodation before they re-boarded their flight the following morning.
Minutes after the BA incident, an easyJet flight (EZY8520) from Funchal also requested a priority landing at Gatwick due to a suspected bird strike.
The easyJet aircraft landed normally and was met by emergency services in line with procedures, purely as a precaution, with the airline stating that customer and crew safety is their highest priority.
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