Dublin on Thursday was the site for an emergency landing when crew on a Cityjet plane discovered smoke and a cracked windshield shortly after take off. The flight WX-118 had just taken off for London City airport with 48 passengers and 4 crew members when the pilot declared a “Pan Pan” emergency. A Pan is used instead of May Day when aircraft and passengers are deemed not to be in immediate danger.

The pilots had been forced to don oxygen masks because of smoke in the cockpit and had also noticed a crack in the windshield. So they turned the flight around and notified Dublin Airport of the returning flight. On return the crew noticed a decrease in smoke but that a smell of smoke remained in the passenger cabin.

Meanwhile the emergency services at Dublin Airport were  put on standby at various locations along the runway in preparation for it’s landing. By 8am the plane had landed safely and was accompanied by the emergency crew as it taxied to the terminal. The London flight was cancelled as the plane remained grounded for further inspections.

The airline released the following statement: “Flight WX118 from Dublin had to return to the airport shortly after take-off, where it landed safely. The crew noticed that there was some evidence of fumes in the aircraft. They followed their drills and procedures and returned to Dublin for a normal approach and landing. After landing, the aircraft was met by the Dublin Airport Fire and Rescue Services. Passengers were re-accommodated on the next flight, WX120 which departed at 8.55am,” Cityjet also confirmed there was no cracked windscreen but a full investigation is under way to ascertain the cause of the incident.

This is the second forced landing in a week for Cityjet with the one last week returning to London City airport. Passengers had become concerned when they noticed a partially detached cover on the left wing on a flight to Florence. This flight also landed safely.