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A flight carrying English fans returning from Berlin was forced to make an emergency landing due to what the airline described as an “unidentifiable odour in the cabin”.
The plane to Manchester had to return to the German airport this morning about 15 minutes after departure.
Flight EW8470 took off at 8:09 a.m. and climbed to 10,000 feet before turning around and landing back in Berlin at 8:26 a.m., flight tracking systems showed.
The Airbus A319 was met by airport firefighters and the approximately 150 passengers and crew on board were evacuated and returned to the terminal.
Britons on board complained of being ‘stranded’ for hours without any information. Many returned to passport control saying they had not received any text messages from the Eurowings airline.
The plane returned to Berlin airport a few minutes after take-off
John Hattam from York, who has flown to all the knockout stages of the European Championships, told MailOnline he was ‘angry’ at the way Eurowings has handled the delay.
“It’s not quite how we thought the weekend would go,” said the exhausted England fan.
In order to avoid high accommodation costs, John flew to the match yesterday morning and then drove straight to the airport at 2am.
He has been there ever since, and at one point he became concerned that he would have to wait until Tuesday for another plane to leave.
He says that there is now a flight scheduled for 3:30 p.m. However, he and his fellow passengers only know this from the departure boards at the airport and have not received any text messages from Eurowings.
He said passengers were given vouchers worth just five euros to buy food, which they could redeem anywhere in the airport.
But when they went to different eateries, he said, “they all said you can’t use them here.”
‘It’s frustrating, we were all disappointed with the outcome last night and then this happens. We’re glad we’re all safe – worse things happen – it’s just the way it’s been handled.’
He said the plane took off “apparently without problems” before the pilot told passengers there was a “burning smell” in the cockpit and they had to land.
“The landing went very well, we were happy to be safely on the ground and we deserve all the credit for that from the pilot,” said John.
“But it was mainly the aftermath that was chaotic, and people are unhappy about that.”
Flight EW8470 took off at 8:09 a.m. and climbed to 10,000 feet before turning around and landing back in Berlin at 8:26 a.m., flight tracking systems showed.
Fire trucks were on the tarmac when the plane landed at Berlin Airport
Another passenger, Gareth Davies from Wigan, said there was no Eurowings representative present to help passengers off the plane. He said the airline ‘just crammed us all back into the airport without any communication’.
Mr Davies also wrote on X that a flight attendant had told him not to take photos or videos because they did not want ‘bad publicity on social media’.
According to Eurowings, passengers and crew were “at no time” in danger during the incident.
It also told German media that passengers are now being rebooked on alternative flights.
The airline said in a statement: ‘Flight EW8470 from Berlin to Manchester returned to Berlin unscheduled this morning due to a strange odour in the cabin.
‘An ‘air emergency’ was declared, a standard procedure to obtain a priority landing. The aircraft normally landed at BER around 8:30 am.
‘Passengers and crew exited the aircraft via the designated passenger staircase and were taken to the terminal by bus. The aircraft was then inspected by the fire department. No findings were made. There was no fire or smoke in the cabin.
‘There were 150 passengers on board the Airbus A319. At no time was there any danger to passengers or crew. Safety always comes first at Eurowings. The affected passengers are being rebooked on alternative flights.’
