Photo: Wikipedia Commons
The national German soccer team had to postpone their celebrations after winning the qualifying World Cup match in Iceland on Wednesday. The plane carrying them home, a Boeing 737, had a mid-air crisis at 29,000 feet (8,800 meters) over Scotland, which forced it to make an emergency landing.
The German team won the World Cup qualifying match against Iceland, beating their opponents in Reykjavik 4-0 on Wednesday night. The victorious ensemble was returning to Frankfurt when the charter jet declared an emergency mid-air.
The plane was said to be 'squawking 7700' - meaning its transponder was reporting the craft had an emergency. Flight plans showed Klasjet flight KLJ2703 making an abrupt turn between Dundee and Arbroath and starting rapidly descending west. It took the aircraft twenty minutes to make a landing in the Scottish capital. The plane ended up safely on the tarmac of the Edinburgh Airport at around 4 am UK time. The flight had taken off at 1:05 am local time from Reykjavik's international airport.
After the news of the emergency landing broke, the German team updated their fans via Twitter this morning and assured them everyone was okay, and that players would be returning home individually.
A tweet read: “Safety first. Safe stopover as a precaution in Edinburgh. From there, individual onward and return journeys are planned.”
Following concern from fans on social media they added: “We are fine. Safety check on the machine is running.” The official account also revealed the players, coaches and staff boarded a replacement flight taking them back to Germany.
A spokesman for Klasjet shared with The Daily Mail: “After experiencing the unreliable functionality of a backup power generator, and as per applicable Boeing and company's safety procedures, the KlasJet flight crew made the decision to divert to the nearest and most suitable alternative airport.”
There’s no official information at this time on what sparked the high-altitude issue, but it's great the story has a happy ending, with everyone returning to the ground safely.
The plane was said to be 'squawking 7700' - meaning its transponder was reporting the craft had an emergency. Flight plans showed Klasjet flight KLJ2703 making an abrupt turn between Dundee and Arbroath and starting rapidly descending west. It took the aircraft twenty minutes to make a landing in the Scottish capital. The plane ended up safely on the tarmac of the Edinburgh Airport at around 4 am UK time. The flight had taken off at 1:05 am local time from Reykjavik's international airport.
After the news of the emergency landing broke, the German team updated their fans via Twitter this morning and assured them everyone was okay, and that players would be returning home individually.
A tweet read: “Safety first. Safe stopover as a precaution in Edinburgh. From there, individual onward and return journeys are planned.”
Following concern from fans on social media they added: “We are fine. Safety check on the machine is running.” The official account also revealed the players, coaches and staff boarded a replacement flight taking them back to Germany.
A spokesman for Klasjet shared with The Daily Mail: “After experiencing the unreliable functionality of a backup power generator, and as per applicable Boeing and company's safety procedures, the KlasJet flight crew made the decision to divert to the nearest and most suitable alternative airport.”
There’s no official information at this time on what sparked the high-altitude issue, but it's great the story has a happy ending, with everyone returning to the ground safely.
Our flight home has been diverted to Edinburgh in order to carry out a precautionary safety inspection on the plane.
— Germany (@DFB_Team_EN) September 9, 2021
Everyone is fine and patiently waiting while the staff go about their business calmly and professionally. Another coffee it is then! ?#DieMannschaft pic.twitter.com/Cqb4c1v0Hj
?? The replacement flight has since arrived and we're heading back to Frankfurt and Munich ????#DieMannschaft
— Germany (@DFB_Team_EN) September 9, 2021
Google News