A British Airways plane was struck by lightning on its way to Heathrow Airport – forcing an urgent diversion.
The BA flight from Stuttgart to Heathrow was forced to divert to Gatwick after being struck by lightning.
Passenger Jeco said: “The BA crew were amazing when our flight was struck by lightning on approach to Heathrow.
“It was shocking. The flight had to be diverted to Gatwick.”
The flight diverted just under an hour late at Gatwick at 2.24pm this afternoon.
Passengers were transported from Gatwick to Heathrow after disembarking.
A Flightaware map shows how the plane charted a smooth course before suddenly circling and zigzagging away from Heathrow.
British Airways said: “BA919 was diverted to Gatwick earlier this afternoon due to weather conditions in the region.
“The flight landed just before 2pm. Customers were flown from Gatwick to Heathrow.”
A Heathrow Airport spokesman said the incident was a BA matter.
Lightning strikes in airline flights are very common and almost always harmless.
Most planes are struck by lightning once or twice a year, according to experts.
This is because planes are very good conductors and act as lightning rods.
Everything you need to know before boarding a plane
More to follow.
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
