New York-Bound Emirates Flight Turns Back Due To Medical Emergency

An Emirates A380 flight, bound to New York’s JFK Airport, was forced to turn around to Dubai following a medical emergency shortly after take -off, the airline confirmed.

Although Emirates did not specify the details of the emergency, it said that the flight did make a safe landing in Dubai.

“Emirates flight EK 201 from Dubai to New York JFK on 26 February returned to Dubai due to a passenger medical emergency,” an official spokesperson said.

“The aircraft has landed and the passenger is being assisted off the aircraft to receive medical attention. Emirates apologises for any inconvenience. The safety of our passengers and crew is always of paramount importance.”

According to a series of tweets, flight EK 210 circled for around two hours to dump fuel to make a safe landing in Dubai.

Fuel dumping is not uncommon among non-routine landings, often prompted by an emergency on board.

Rules stipulate that airplanes are required to have an ideal landing and take-off weight. If aircraft are forced to turn back soon after take-off, they will have to lose fuel in order to land safely.

Failure to achieve ideal landing weight could result in structural damage to the aircraft, experts say.