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TAP flight 1691 was forced to make an emergency landing at Madeira’s International Airport this afternoon ‘under reinforced security measures.’
The flight, which departed Lisbon airport at 15:30 was met by the police and fire brigade teams who were prepared for any eventuality. Later passengers stated that during the flight, the captain had reassured them and asked them to remain calm.
Fortunately, the landing happened without incident although one passenger said the it was a little ‘bumpy.’
As yet the cause of the emergency landing has not been disclosed. However, according to what was heard over ‘squalk7700’ an onboard emergency was declared. On disembarking one passenger was overheard being asked if they’d smelt smoke.
Another TAP Airbus A321neo, CS-TJR has been stranded since Wednesday at Ponta Delgada Airport, in the Azores, after 132 hamsters broke free from their transportation boxes and have created havoc in the hold ever since, states Aviação TV portal, in a Facebook post.
According to the page, “ground maintenance teams have been trying to recapture the hairy little beasts for the past four days, which prevented the aircraft from returning to Lisbon for safety reasons.
They were still running amok on Saturday the 16th!
Samantha Gannon
info at madeira-weekly.com