Update:
An airline spokeswoman said: “American Airlines flight 104 from New York (JFK) to London (LHR), diverted to Shannon (SNN) after an indicator light in the cockpit indicated a possible mechanical issue. The flight landed safely in Shannon, and taxied to the gate. Our maintenance crew evaluated the aircraft and the flight has since continued to Heathrow. We never want to disrupt our customers’ travel plans, and we are sorry for the inconvenience this caused.”
A transatlantic jet has made an emergency landing at Shannon Airport after the crew reported a possible fire on board.
American Airlines flight AA-104 was travelling from New York to London when the crew declared a May-Day emergency at around 7.30am. There were 247 passengers and 14 crew on board.
The crew of the Boeing 777-200 jet advised air traffic controllers they had a “fire indication” in one of the cargo holds. The crew confirmed they had activated the internal fire extinguishers as a precaution.
Authorities at Shannon implemented emergency procedures which involved alerting the external statutory agencies to respond to support the airport’s own fire and rescue crews.
Units of Clare County Fire and Rescue Service were mobilised from Shannon Town and Ennis stations while the National Ambulance Service and An Garda Síochána also dispatched multiple resources.
The Irish Coast Guard was also informed of the emergency and lifeboats based at Fenit, Kilrush and the Aran Islands were placed on standby as a precaution.
The crew told controllers that the fire alarm was in the aft (rear) cargo hold but suspected it was probably a “false indication.”
The flight landed safely at 8.42am and was quickly followed along the runway by emergency vehicles which then surrounded the plane.
The pilot requested that fire crews use thermal imaging equipment to carry out an external inspection of the fuselage to see whether there was any indication of heat of fire.
Once it had been confirmed they was no indication fire, the aircraft the was able to taxi to the terminal where a further investigation of the issue was carried out.
It’s not yet clear when the passengers will continue their journey.