Fire engines at Larnaca airport took precautionary measures Thursday as the pilot of a British Airways plane from London Heathrow reported smoke in the cockpit during the approach for landing.
At about 2pm after the pilot of the Airbus A320 informed the control tower that he would attempt to land the plane, air traffic controllers informed the fire brigade whose intervention in the event was not in the end necessary as the aircraft landed normally without any glitches.
Following the disembarking of all the passengers, the plane was taken to a different spot at the airport for a first inspection by firemen. They were unable however to immediately detect where the problem was.
It is unknown whether and to what extent, the captain and co-pilot of the aircraft inhaled any smoke, but both were evacuated by ambulance to Accident and Emergency at Larnaca General Hospital for tests.
Further investigations of the aircraft are expected to be carried out by experts in order to clarify exactly what caused the smoke and odour the captain and co-pilot detected in the cockpit. The incident has not affected the operation of the airport.
Cyprus Mail