A Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787-9, which was flying VS41 between London-Heathrow (LHR) and San Francisco (SFO), had to return to its airport of origin after the pilots' window developed cracks.
According to local media, the aircraft was at an altitude of 40.000 feet (approximately 12 kilometers) when the pilots noticed some cracks in the cockpit windows. The aircraft was between Greenland and Iceland, returning to London 3 hours after takeoff. Although the incident occurred on May 27, the fact gained notoriety in the British media only in the last few days.
🚨✈️ VIRGIN ATLANTIC BOEING WINDSCREEN CRACKS AT 40,000 FEET, FORCING RETURN TO UK
A packed Virgin Atlantic Boeing jet's windscreen cracked at 40,000 feet on a flight from Heathrow to San Francisco, forcing a return to the UK.
There seems to be a major issue with a Boeing plane… pic.twitter.com/gPxp9XdYKw
— Kacee Allen (@KaceeRAllen) June 22, 2024
After the aircraft landed safely in London, the engers were accommodated in hotels and reassigned to the same flight the following day.
At the time, Virgin Atlantic, in turn, apologized to the affected engers and said that “at no time” was flight VS41 at risk.
"We have always worked well above industry safety standards and the aircraft was back in service within 24 hours of the event. We would like to apologize to the customers involved for the delay in their travel.,” said a company spokesperson.
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