A flight from Scotland to the Canary Islands (Spain) diverted to Shannon Airport early this morning after a passenger was reported to have fallen ill.
Ryanair flight FR-2969 took off from Edinburgh shortly after 6.00am bound for Tenerife.
Around 90 minutes after departure, while the Boeing 737 8-200MAX aircraft was about 440 kilometres south of Ireland, the crew declared a medical emergency.
The crew issued a Pan-pan radio call which indicates an urgency on board but is not as serious as a May-day call. The crew also broadcast an emergency squawk signal on their transponder.
The crew was cleared to turned around and divert to Shannon.
Air traffic controllers notified authorities at the airport of the unscheduled arrival while the National Ambulance Service was also contacted and requested to dispatch resources to the airport.
The flight landed at 8.28am and was met at the terminal by airport staff and ambulance paramedics. The passenger was removed to University Hospital Limerick for treatment and the flight continued its journey later in the morning.
A Ryanair spokesperson confirmed: “This flight from Edinburgh to Tenerife South diverted to Shannon after a passenger became ill onboard. The crew called ahead for medical assistance to meet the aircraft upon landing at Shannon Airport who treated the passenger.
This flight continued to Tenerife South that same morning.”
