Ryanair flight from Edinburgh forced to make emergency landing at Manchester Airport - what happened?

A Ryanair flight was forced to make an emergency landing at a UK airport shortly after take-off.

Flight FR5663 EDI-AGP embarked on its journey from Edinburgh to Malaga yesterday afternoon (Tuesday 26 September) but it had to quickly divert to Manchester Airport.

The aircraft diverted shortly after it took off from Edinburgh due to a passenger becoming ill on board.

Crew called ahead and requested a diversion to Manchester for the medical emergency.

The flight was in the air for under an hour when the staff were made to land so the passenger could receive medical attention, Manchester Evening News reported.

The flight later continued to Malaga after a one-hour delay.

A Ryanair spokesperson confirmed that the passenger was “transported to a hospital for further treatment” but no further details have been revealed.

The spokesperson said last night: “This flight from Edinburgh to Malaga diverted to Manchester after a passenger became ill onboard. The crew called ahead for medical assistance to meet the aircraft upon landing at Manchester Airport.

“The passenger was disembarked and transported to a nearby hospital for further treatment. This flight continued to Malaga following approximately one-hour delay and is due to land at approximately 22.45 local time.”

The airline has promised that its passengers will not be affected by the flight cap Gatwick airport has imposed due to a shortage of staff at National Air Traffic Services (Nats).

A daily 800-flight limit, affecting both departures and arrivals, has been imposed at Gatwick Airport from Monday (25 September) until Sunday (1 October) due to air traffic control staffing problems caused by sickness.

Ryanair said in a statement: “Gatwick Airport is imposing a daily cap of 800 flights until Monday October 2 and asking airlines to cancel flights, which Ryanair will not be doing.”

It went on: “It is unacceptable that airlines have been asked to cancel flights to/from Gatwick Airport for the next six days as a result of Nats’s failure to adequately staff UK ATC.

“It is the most basic requirement to hire and train adequate staff numbers including standby coverage.”