British Airways flight BA295 suddenly descends nearly 28,000 feet while crossing Ireland. What happened?

British Airways's flight BA295 experienced an emergency on Monday while flying over Ireland, after suddenly descending from 37,000 feet to about 9,000 feet. The Boeing 777 was en route from London Heathrow to Chicago O'Hare when the emergency declaration was made. The incident came almost a week after the FlyDubai incident in which the flight FZ1073 experienced a rapid 14,000-to-17,000-foot altitude plunge after an Omani co-pilot, Hamam al-Hammami, launched a cockpit attack against the Indian captain, Smit Machchhar. However, no reason has yet been cited by British Airways about the emergency in flight BA295.

As per reports, the emergency situation prompted the flight to squawk 7700, which is a general emergency code. The nature of the issue that led to the emergency declaration remains unclear. After the sudden descent, the aircraft stabilized at a lower altitude and began circling over the Bristol Channel. It is believed that this maneuver was intended to burn off fuel in preparation for a precautionary landing back at Heathrow.

Long-haul flights, such as BA295, typically carry a considerable amount of fuel for transatlantic journeys. Reducing fuel weight is crucial when a plane needs to land earlier than planned. Flight-tracking data showed BA295 losing nearly 28,000 feet in altitude within a few minutes, which is about ten times the height of the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world.


No injuries are reported yet.

This is a developing story. More details are awaited.