Brit plane passengers stranded on Maldives after 'mid-air medical emergency'
Brits travelling from Australia to London have been left stranded on the paradise islands of the Maldives after a mid-air emergency saw their plane diverted. The Qantas ultra-long haul flight from Perth to Heathrow normally takes around 18 hours non-stop, but eight hours in the pilot decided to land the flagship QF9 flight in the archipelago after a medical issue on board.
No details of who needed help or what the nature of the medical emergency have yet been released. The Dreamliner can carry 236 passengers as well as a full crew, but it is not clear how many people were in board when the plane left Western Australia on Monday evening.
Those on board are now waiting in the Maldives for a new crew. It is understood Qantas has already dispatched staff from London to fly out to the Maldives and help assist the stranded passengers. There are no details of when those currently in Malé in the Maldives will be repatriated to the UK.
A Qantas spokeswoman confirmed the incident in a statement to the press. It read: 'Earlier this morning our Perth to London service diverted to Malé in the Maldives due to a medical incident on-board. We're working with customers to rebook them on alternate flights out of Malé."
QF9 flies on the UK to Perth route in just under 18 hours without stopping and is one of the only airlines that makes this extremely long journey. It covers more than 14,500 kilometres - around 9,000 miles - on the way around the globe.
Back in September the Mirror reported how a Turkish Airlines planed needed to make an emergency landing after a pilot died during the flight.
The plane had took off from Seattle in the USA at around 7pm and was forced to land at New York. It was originally bound for Istanbul before tragedy struck. An airline spokesman said: "The pilot of our Airbus 350... flight TK204 from Seattle to Istanbul collapsed during the flight.
"After an unsuccessful attempt to give first aid, the flight crew of another pilot and a co-pilot decided to make an emergency landing, but he died before landing."
The spokesman said the 59-year-old pilot, Ilcehin Pehlivan, had worked for Turkish Airlines since 2007. They added he had passed a medical examination in March, which gave no indication of any health problems.
The spokesman added: "We wish God's mercy upon our captain and patience to his grieving family, all his colleagues and loved ones."
It is not clear how many passengers were onboard at the time. It landed successfully at JFK airport in New York shortly before 6am local time (about 11am BST).
The original flight from Seattle to Istanbul should have taken around 11 hours. The Turkish Airline plane was diverted after around eight hours flying time.
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