A Ryanair flight carrying British holidaymakers has been forced to make an unscheduled landing due to a loss of cabin pressure, the company has said.
Flight FR9336 from Bristol to Barcelona Girona Airport was hit by a “depressurisation incident” on Monday night, Ryanair confirmed.
The plane was diverted to Limoges in central France and 16 passengers were taken to hospital with earache.
Ryanair said it had sent an engineer to try to find out what happened.
In a statement posted on its website, Ryanair said said the loss of pressure “caused the oxygen masks on board to deploy”.
“As a safety precaution the captain descended and diverted the aircraft to Limoges Airport at approximately 2330 local French time,” the company said.
“All 168 passengers disembarked safely upon landing. “A total of 16 passengers together with five accompanying family members have been transferred, at their request, to a local hospital complaining of earache.
“As a precaution, Limoges Airport have arranged a local doctor to be available to any other passengers should they require.”
Arctic explorer Pen Hadow and his family were among those on the flight.
“I would say some people thought we were going to die – that is how frightening it was,” he said.
“The woman sitting in the seats in front of us was whimpering.”
Mr Hadow, who became the first man to walk unaided to the North Pole in 2003, said some people had clapped when the plane landed safely, while others cried with relief.
Replacement aircraft
Ryanair said a replacement aircraft had been flown from Stansted Airport to Limoges to take the remaining passengers to Barcelona. They were expected to land some time in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
“The remaining 21 passengers, and any others who do not wish fly onwards to Barcelona Girona this evening, have been offered overnight accommodation and will be transferred onward to Barcelona Girona by coach on the morning of the 26th August,” the statement said.
A Ryanair spokesman could not confirm how many passengers, other than those attending hospital, had chosen not to fly.
BBC NEWS | UK | Forced landing for Ryanair flight
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A Ryanair flight carrying British holidaymakers has been forced to make an unscheduled landing due to a loss of cabin pressure, the company has said.