IRELAND: United Airlines Emergency Landing

A United Airlines jet has been forced to make an emergency landing at Shannon airport in south-west Ireland.

No one on board was injured when the flight, from Belfast International to Newark, was forced to divert to Shannon on Monday morning after a mechanical issue in relation to nose and landing gear.

Before landing, Flight UA76 had to circle around Ireland’s western seaboard dumping fuel from the skies above County Clare. The Boeing 757-224 plane had left Belfast international airport at 11.19am and was due to arrive at Newark airport in the US at 1.45pm local time

Drunk Woman Removed From Thomas Cook Plane

A 'drunk' passenger who 'kept banging her head when she sat down' was removed from a Thomas Cook flight to Belfast from Lanzarote.

The plane, which had 200 passengers on board, was preparing to take off from Lanzarote Airport, when the captain took the decision to halt the flight.

A female passenger, and a man who was travelling with her, were escorted off the plane that was set to fly on to Belfast International Airport.

Speaking to Donegal Now, one passenger on the plane alleged that the woman was in a 'drunken' state.

'She was just in front of me, and she kept banging her head when she sat down in the plane,' said the eyewitness.

In line with security procedures, all the passengers and their luggage had to be removed from the plane, and flight TCX8229 departed the Spanish airport just over an hour late.

Several passengers had noted the condition of the woman during the boarding process, and that she appeared very unsteady on her feet.

The Airbus A320 landed in Belfast at 1.56am yesterday (Monday) morning.

The nationality of the woman or the man travelling with her has not been disclosed.

A spokesperson for Thomas Cook said 'We're extremely sorry to our customers who were delayed and made every effort to make up time during the flight home.

'A female passenger was removed from the aircraft prior to departure. The safety of our passengers and crew is our top priority and we don't tolerate disruptive behaviour on our flights.'

Last week hundreds of passengers have been arrested on suspicion of being drunk on a plane or at a UK airport in the last two years, figures reveal

At least 442 people were held between March 2014 and March 2016, in police statistics obtained by a news agency.

Cases include drunk passengers accused of attempting to open the doors of a plane, smashing a window and banging on the outside of the cockpit.

Alleged incidents at airports include a man headbutting another person after being refused permission to fly and a passenger at Luton Airport smashing a barrier and kicking out a door panel after he missed his flight, according to the Press Association who obtained the statistics.

UNITED KINGDOM: International Consortium To Buy London City Airport

A Consortium comprised of Ontario Teachers, Borealis and Aimco pension funds from Canada and Kuwait’s Wren House have announced today a purchasing agreement to acquire Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), main owner and operator of London City Airport.

The Consortium already owns Belfast International Airport, Birmingham, Bristol, Brussels and Copenhagen Airports. As part of this new investment, the group intends to “develop existing and new airline relationships and routes, improving the airport’s customer service, and generating opportunities for new and existing employees.”

GIP acquired its 75% interest in London City Airport through two successive transactions in 2006 and 2008. Since then, the airport located at the London Borough of Newham, has successfully grown traffic numbers from 2 million passengers in 2005 to 4.3 million in 2015, a rise of 18% compared to 2014.

But with success comes problems. The airport is currently fighting over a proposed City Airport Development Program (CADP), which would allow the extension of the terminal and ramp to provide additional capacity. According to the plan, this would allow the increase of air traffic movements from 70,000 flights a year to 120,000 by 2023.

“London City Airport is a premium infrastructure company, operating in a very attractive market. We look forward to working closely with the airport’s strong management team to achieve the business’s full long-term potential” a spokesperson for the Consortium said.