A Jet2 holiday flight bound for Spain was forced to make an emergency diversion to London Stansted Airport this afternoon after declaring an alert over southern England.
LONDON — Flight LS257, a Boeing 737-800 operated by the British leisure airline, departed Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA) at 4:40 PM BST, tracking south toward Palma de Mallorca in the Balearic Islands.
The aircraft had reached its cruising altitude of 37,000 feet when the flight crew unexpectedly initiated an emergency protocol.
Incident Timeline
| Time (BST) | Event |
| 4:40 PM | Flight LS257 departs Leeds Bradford Airport |
| 5:20 PM | Aircraft reaches 37,000 feet; pilots broadcast “Squawk 7700” general emergency code |
| 5:22 PM | Flight performs a sharp U-turn just north of the English Channel |
| 5:50 PM | Aircraft safely routes into London Stansted airspace for diversion |
Mid-Air About-Face
According to live flight tracking data, the twin-engine aircraft (registration G-JZBD) was flying just short of the English Channel when the crew transmitted a Squawk 7700 code—the international aviation transponder signal used to designate an immediate emergency.
Upon signaling the alert, the pilots turned the aircraft around, abandoning its planned route to Spain. Air Traffic Control immediately prioritized the flight, routing it away from the busy cross-channel corridors and directing it toward London Stansted Airport (STN) in Essex due to a medical emergency on board. London Stansted serves as a primary diversion hub for the region, equipped with large-scale emergency response infrastructure and long runways capable of handling distressed commercial aircraft safely.
Emergency services at Stansted were placed on standard standby to meet the aircraft upon arrival. Onward travel arrangements for the holidaybound passengers are expected to be coordinated by Jet2 from the London hub.
UPDATE 17:40 BST
On final approach to London Stansted.
UPDATE 17:43 BST
Touch down on runway 04.
