Ryanair flight MINUTES away from running out of fuel mid-air
An investigation was launched after a Ryanair plane arrived six minutes after running out of fuel in the air.
The flight made an emergency landing in Manchester with a ‘fuel mayday’ message while en route from Pisa, Italy, to Glasgow Prestwick Airport on 3 October.
The storm came as Amy did Winds of up to 160 kilometers per hour cause chaos in transportation across the country.
The cockpit crew issued squawk code 7700, a general emergency alert.
The flight, operated by Malta Air on behalf of Ryanair, made several unsuccessful attempts to land at Prestwick before landing at Edinburgh Airport. This also failed.
The aircraft then headed for Manchester and landed safely almost two hours after the first lap at Prestwick.
The aircraft reportedly had only 220 kg of fuel left in the tank, which was only enough for five or six minutes of flight time.
Ultimate reserve fuel is the absolute minimum amount of fuel an aircraft can have before it is deemed unsafe to remain in the air.
An investigation has been launched after a Ryanair plane arrived six minutes after it “ran out of fuel” in the air (file image)
Alexander Marchi, one of the passengers who arrived at his destination 10 hours later than planned, spoke with the authorities. Ayr Advertiser About the flight experience.
He said: ‘After leaving Pisa late due to the general strike and protesters occupying the airport tarmac, we were worried we might not get to Prestwick before the storm arrived.
‘Everything was fine until we started our descent. The plane circled several times before the first attempt, but took off almost immediately.
‘We were told we would have to try again or we would have to go to Manchester. The second time was a very bumpy ride and we almost reached the tarmac but took off very sharply at the last minute.
‘Ultimately after landing in Manchester with almost no fuel we realized how bad things were after seeing the footage.
‘It was a huge relief. People wanted to land and they certainly weren’t ready to fly any time soon.’
The amount of fuel required for a Boeing 737-800, the type of aircraft used for a Ryanair flight, cannot fall below 30 minutes of flight time.
However, for turboprop aircraft flying at higher altitudes, this amount increases up to 45 minutes of fuel.
A spokesperson for Ryanair told the Daily Mail: ‘Ryanair reported this to the relevant authorities on Friday 3 October.
‘We are unable to comment as this is currently the subject of an ongoing investigation with which we are fully co-operating.’
