An El Al Israel Airlines flight from London to Tel Aviv made an emergency landing at Heathrow Airport soon after takeoff early today as an engine caught fire, according to local media.
El Al officials said travelers on Flight 318, with 411 passengers on board, heard a loud noise on the plane’s starboard side, soon after takeoff at about 1:00 a.m. Israel time.
The Boeing 747-400 then lost speed and passengers reported a strong smell and saw flames coming out of one of the engines, according to the Haaretz daily.
Captain Ilan Margalit dumped the aircraft’s fuel, and returned to safe landing using the three remaining engines, according to the report.
“There was no danger to passengers or to the aircraft at any stage of the incident,” El Al said in a statement, according to Army radio.
El Al authorities said they were working to get all of the passengers onto alternate flights to Israel within 24 hours.
Source: Xinhua News
{Matzav.com Israel News Bureau}
Good news. El Al has a proud safety record.
What do you mean there was no danger to passengers? of course there was. Hashem just protected them…. that’s just pr.