United Airlines Boeing 767 Passengers Safe after Emergency landing in Iceland

united airlines kef k1Keflavik, Iceland: At 14:44 local and GMT time (2:44pm) at Iceland’s largest international airport and gateway airport to the country, Keflavik, a United Airlines Boeing 767-300 made an emergency landing. The United Airlines Flight Number 949 flying en route London Heathrow to Chicago O’hare (ORD) when the flight crew and pilots witnessed smoke coming from the cockpit. As per standard procedures, the pilots declared an emergency and diverted to the closest airfield from the present location which was Keflavik, Iceland.

The pilot then decided to clear everyone off the airplane. Icelandair Ground Services (IGS) handled the passengers and moved them into the terminal while the airplane is being checked and serviced to find out what the problem is. According to Fridthor Eydal, Public Relations Liason at Keflavik Airport, all passengers are safe without any injuries or fatalities. After finding out what caused the problem, the media will be the notified.

The United Airlines boeing 767-300 Flight Number 949 touched down safely at 14:44 on runway 02 (runway heading northerly) and parked and evacuated passengers on taxiway K-1 (kilo one), according to sources at Keflavik Airport. As stated above, all passengers are alive and no injuries have been reported. The plane departed London Heathrow at 12:39pm local time and flew for 3 hours and 5 minutes until touching down at Keflavik.

Keflavik Aiport is the main international airport of Iceland. Most jet airline operators service Keflavik including Icelandair, Iceland Express, Lufthansa, Esotnian Air, and other airlines. Keflavik often serves as a fuel stopover for private planes en route to and from USA and Europe. It is also common for planes that need to divert due to any reason to land at Keflavik. Keflavik is located roughly 45km west of the capital city of Iceland, Reykjavik.

The plane is still at Keflavik today (21 July). Another plane is being sent to Keflavik to pick up the passengers and there is a scheduled departure according to Keflavik Airport website at 14:30 today, under the same flight number UA949. The cause of the smoke was from an electrical problem.

(Photo/United Airlines Parked at Keflavik K-1 Taxiway)

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