Virgin Atlantic flight diverts to Gatwick after declaring on-board problem

The airline has said that there is no mayday situation onboard. The plane dumped or burned off fuel over the Irish Sea before turning back.

Updated 16.02pm

A VIRGIN ATLANTIC flight from Manchester to Orlando has been forced to divert to Gatwick a technical problem on board.

Radar tracking shows that flight VS73 circled over the sea off the coast of north Wales to burn off or dump fuel before returning to land.

It had been reported that an emergency had been declared on board. However Virgin has tweeted that the plane experienced a minor technical issue and that the plane is “returning to Gatwick to be rectified”.

The airline also said that it is “not a mayday situation”.

The flight path shows how the plane circled about the ocean off the Welsh coast before heading to Gatwick. Image: FlightRadar24.com

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