British Airways flight to Chicago dropped 28,000 feet in about 7 minutes over Ireland, then circled for 4 hours before landing back in London

British Airways flight BA295 successfully landed back at London Heathrow after a technical issue forced the aircraft to plummet 28,000 feet during a trip to Chicago. The Boeing 777-200ER departed London at 12.14 PM on Monday, but the transatlantic journey took a sharp turn after the plane reached its cruising altitude of 37,000 feet. Oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling less than an hour into the flight, according to The Guardian.

The pilots quickly issued a 7700 emergency squawk, the international code for a general emergency, to alert air traffic control. They brought the aircraft down to below 10,000 feet to stabilize the cabin environment. While British Airways hasn’t officially confirmed the cause of the emergency, this type of rapid descent and the deployment of oxygen masks are standard procedures when a plane experiences cabin depressurization.

However, the airline has not said whether the cabin lost pressure, as its statement only cited a technical issue. Passenger Tom Nicholls described the experience on board, noting a sudden bit of turbulence before the situation escalated. He mentioned that the descent to 9,000 feet didn’t feel particularly uncomfortable or rapid. “The plane adjusted but it didn’t feel like it was descending rapidly. I’d say the pilots did a very good job,” Tom Nicholls said.

One passenger thought the pilots did a very good job

Nicholls said there was some uncertainty onboard as the oxygen masks popped out soon after. However, not every passenger could reach one. “The couple in front couldn’t get to theirs but by the time they’d found a spare seat with a mask, the captain announced we were below 10,000ft so they were not needed,” Nicholls said. Before the plane could land at Heathrow, it had to enter a holding pattern over the Bristol Channel, between Pembrokeshire and North Devon.

This allowed the pilots to burn off fuel, reducing the aircraft’s weight to ensure a normal landing. The plane finally arrived back at the airport just after 5 PM. The holding pattern lasted around four hours, meaning passengers spent nearly five hours in the air before landing back in London. The flight to Chicago’s O’Hare airport normally takes about eight hours and 40 minutes. Photos shared by passengers showed the masks hanging from the cabin ceiling during the return leg.

This Boeing 777-200ER is one of the older models in the British Airways fleet, delivered in July 1997. Flight-tracking service Flightradar24 identified the British Airways jet by its registration, G-VIIA, and it posted about the emergency while the plane was still over Ireland. “The safety of our customers and crew is always our top priority, and the aircraft landed safely after our highly trained pilots returned to Heathrow following a technical issue,” a British Airways spokesperson said.

They also confirmed that passengers disembarked normally and that the team is working to get everyone on their way again. Many of those passengers have already been booked onto new flights departing on Tuesday, after the airline provided hotel rooms overnight. British Airways has yet to say what caused the technical issue.