Today at around 14:00 GMT a United Airlines Boeing 767 diverted to Keflavik Airport in Iceland and declared an emergency. According to sources, the airplane had smoke in the cockpit and cabin. There were 200 passengers on board the airplane. The airplane was en route from Europe to the USA. No reports of injuries have been made. Read the full story

Two teams of volunteers from the emergency response unit of the Southwest Iceland Red Cross were on site to welcome passengers aboard a troubled flight.

The plane was en route from Paris to Reykjavik when it was forced to make an emergency landing at Gatwick in London. Read the full story

Iceland’s Independence Party has repaid a ISK 300,000 donation made by Neydarlinan, the country’s emergency services hotline (accessed by dialling 112).

The Independence Party admitted it should not have accepted the 2007 donation as it runs counter to a 2006 law on which organisations can and cannot contribute to political parties. Read the full story

As Thailand’s political crisis rumbles on, the number of foreigners booking trips to the country has plummeted, causing losses the tourist industry can ill-afford.

The state of emergency imposed by the government in the face of fierce political protests was lifted on 14 September, but the political situation still looks Read the full story

A 30 year-old passenger who fell ill during a recent Iceland Express flight from Barcelona to Reykjavik owes her life to the quick thinking of the captain and crew, according Icelandic news site 24 Stundir.

The passenger became seriously unwell after just 45 minutes’ flying time with an irregular heartbeat and difficulty breathing.

It is believed that the woman suffered an acute asthma attack, and had forgotten to bring her medication with her on the flight. The crew gave her oxygen and asthma medicine from the plane’s emergency kit, but without success.

“The crew began by asking if there was a doctor onboard, and then considering the woman’s condition, it was decided to land the plane as quickly as possible,” the captain said. Out of respect for his colleagues, the captain has requested his name not be published.

The pilots landed the plane in Basel, Switzerland. There the woman was rushed to hospital, where she stayed for a day and a half before continuing to Iceland where she is visiting relatives.

Doctors told the patient afterwards that she could have died from a lack of oxygen if not for the quick thinking of the Iceland Express crewmembers.

The captain said the landing in Switzerland went well, but added that when a plane has only spent a short period of time in the air and is still full of fuel, it can be very difficult to land. For that reason, the pilots had to burn off fuel as quickly as possible before landing, including flying with the landing gear down to reduce aerodynamic efficiency.

The captain also said that once or twice a year he is required to perform an early landing due to a passenger falling ill. “I didn’t do anything heroic,” he said. “This is just a part of our jobs, and we are trained to deal with difficult situations.”

Health and safety regulations meant that the crew was not permitted to continue the flight. “As there was no other Iceland Express crew at the airport at the time, the passengers were put up in a hotel overnight,” said Iceland Express media representative Lara Omarsdottir. She said the other passengers on board were very understanding and were able to continue their journey they next day.

Iceland Express is the only budget airline offering cheap flights to Iceland from 14 cities in Europe. For more information, go to www.icelandexpress.com

The wreckage of a light aircraft that disappeared on 20th June has been found off the coast of Hordaland County near Bergen in Norway. All three people onboard died in the accident.

The plane, a Fairchild Merlin IIIB, had been on a training mission for The Kystverket, the Norwegian Coastal Administration, when it went down in stormy weather, killing the three pilots Jan Einarsen, aged 60; Knut Brunborg, aged 45; and Inge Marius Vagsberg, aged 29.

All three bodies were found trapped in the wreckage. The cause of the crash remains unclear and the commission is yet to examine the cockpit recorder which was found intact.

“We found the wreckage approximately where we believed it was lying,” said Tor Norstegard of the state commission that investigates accidents (Havarikommisjonen). The wreckage and the victims were located with the help of a mini-submarine.

“If we can find out what was being said in the cockpit just before the accident, it will be very useful for us,” said Norstegard.