Virgin Atlantic jet lands safely with landing gear problem

media player. Press enter to return or tab to continue.

A Virgin Atlantic passenger plane has landed safely at London's Gatwick Airport after a "technical issue" with part of its main landing gear.

Virgin flight VS43 was travelling from Gatwick to Las Vegas when it had to return to the West Sussex airport.

The aircraft circled repeatedly over north Devon and the south coast of England apparently to burn off fuel.

The Boeing 747 made a bumpy but safe landing just before 16:00 GMT. Gatwick's runway is closed as a result.

Aircraft due to land at Gatwick are either holding in the air near the airport or are being diverted, while departing flights are being delayed, according to the airport's website.

A Virgin spokesman said: "Virgin Atlantic can confirm that the plane has landed safely at Gatwick. Our priority now is to look after our passengers."

Flashing lights of emergency vehicles could be seen close to the plane, which appeared to have landed without its full set of landing gear.

Ambulances and fire-and-rescue crews had been on standby as the plane circled the airport in the hours after it took off for the US late on Monday morning.

Before the successful conclusion to the incident, Virgin announced the plane would be carrying out a "non-standard landing procedure" at Gatwick airport.

Pictures of the 747 circling over East Sussex - to burn off fuel - were shared on social media

The problem affected part of the 747's right main landing gear

The issue meant the aircraft had to land on three of its four main landing gear

Gatwick Airport tweeted: "Virgin flight VS043 landed safely, the aircraft is being reviewed and passengers are disembarking. Check with your airline for flight delays."

Passenger Sunjay Patel, who was travelling to Las Vegas as a birthday treat, tweeted: "We have safely landed back at Gatwick after a bit of drama."

Describing the mood on the plane as it was circling, passenger Dan Crane, 24, from Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, said it was "anxious, a lot were worried, some crying. The mood was quiet, just waiting for the captain's next announcement."

Mr Crane, who is with family and friends, said the crew kept everyone informed, adding: "They said it was an emergency landing and we had to brace on impact."

Passenger Mike Kaufman, speaking from his seat on the plane back at Gatwick, said: "This was one of the greatest emergency landings in history. It was very smooth."

He praised the pilots and the cabin crew, saying the landing had been "textbook".

"Everyone seems to be fine. We are going to be leaving the plane soon. Hopefully to board another plane."

Pictures posted on Twitter of the aircraft circling over East and West Sussex showed damage to the landing gear of the aircraft.

Eyewitnesses reported the jet was flying at relatively low altitude and the pilot appeared to be trying to "shake" the landing gear down.

People were tracking the seemingly erratic movements of the plane in real time via smartphone apps like FlightRadar24, which collects radar data. Its website was down because of the volume of users.

Those in the south of the UK who could see the plane circling from the ground were sharing pictures of it, including images of the damaged landing gear on social media networks.