Loganair plane forced to make emergency landing at Manchester Airport

Domestic flight had been bound for Bristol

The Loganair aircraft involved was an Embraer 145 (Getty Images)

A Loganair flight made the decision to divert to Manchester Airport last night, with the airline calling it a “precautionary landing”.

Flight LOG5PS from Aberdeen, Scotland, had been bound for Bristol, departing at 7.40pm.

But pilots issued a squawk alert over the North of England around an hour into the flight, circling over Wrexham, North Wales at around 8.30pm before turning northeast and landing at Manchester at 9.07pm.

Flightradar24 data shows the aircraft involved was an Embraer 145.

Flightradar24 showed the diversion at 8.40pm (Flightradar24)

Loganair confirmed to The Independent that the plane had diverted due to an “indication fault”, and thanked customers onboard for their “patience”.

A spokesperson said all passengers had been transferred to Bristol by the airline after landing.

The spokesperson said: “We can confirm our Aberdeen to Bristol flight LM045 made a precautionary landing in Manchester due to an indication fault.

“The flight has since landed and Loganair thanks affected passengers for their patience.

“Alternative travel arrangements have been made to ensure customers are transported to Bristol.”

Pilots divert flights rather than continuing to their destination for a variety of reasons.

In September, A British Airways pilot bound for Rhodes had to perform an emergency landing in Athens because the plane’s windshield shattered mid-flight.

Meanwhile, a Qantas flight from Perth was forced to make an emergency landing when it was struck by lightning while mid-air in August.

“Aircraft are designed to withstand and fly safely when struck by lightning, but it is policy that they get inspected at their arrival port after a strike,” a Qantas spokesperson said at the time.

In July, Irish budget airline Ryanair agreed to pay an undisclosed sum to a passenger who was hurt when one of its planes lost pressure and made an emergency landing.