A plane flying to the United States had to return to the UK 40 minutes into the flight, reportedly because a pilot was still in training. The Virgin Atlantic Airbus A330 was from Heathrow Airport to JFK airport in New York.
Passengers were returned to Heathrow after the first officer told the captain he had not yet completed his last flying test, BirminghamLive reports. It was then that flight VS3 had to U-turn over Ireland and head back to the airport near London.
A spokesman from Virgin Atlantic said: “Due to a rostering error, flight VS3 from London Heathrow to New York-JFK returned to Heathrow on Monday 2nd May shortly after take-off. The qualified first officer, who was flying alongside an experienced captain, was replaced with a new pilot to ensure full compliance with Virgin Atlantic’s training protocols, which exceed industry standards.
