British Airways Flight BA295 returns to Heathrow after emergency descent over Ireland
Flight BA295 from London to Chicago descended rapidly over Ireland, declared a general emergency and later landed back at Heathrow after circling to burn fuel.
Rapid descent and emergency code
While cruising over Ireland the Boeing 777‑200ER dropped about 28,000 feet from roughly 37,000 feet to 9,000 feet. The crew transmitted a squawk 7700 general emergency code during the descent.
Holding pattern and fuel burn
After the descent the aircraft entered a holding pattern over Ireland, flying circles to burn fuel before returning to Heathrow. The flight burned 30 tonnes of fuel before landing on runway 27L at Heathrow.
Return to Heathrow and cancellation
The flight turned back toward the UK, flew south of Wales and over southwestern England before landing at Heathrow. The flight was cancelled after landing.
Flight timing
The aircraft departed Heathrow at about 11:50 am local time with a scheduled flight time of eight hours and 40 minutes to Chicago. One source reported the total time in the air was nearly five hours, while another gave a duration of four hours and 47 minutes.
Analysed 5 reports from 3 sources
How we use AI · Report an error
