Belfast City Airport ‘operating as normal’ after emergency incident involving Aer Lingus plane

Belfast City Airport’s runway is “operating as normal” on Monday after it was forced to close following an emergency incident.

A plane’s nose wheel collapsed as it landed in the airport amid adverse weather conditions on Sunday afternoon.

There were four crew on board and no passengers when the hard landing occurred.

The incident triggered emergency procedures at Belfast City Airport and forced the runway to close for the rest of the day.

Several flights were redirected.

Emerald Airlines, which was operating the flight, said the incident was a result of adverse weather conditions that has been disrupting travel across the UK.

On Monday morning, Belfast City Airport said normal operations were resuming.

In a statement, it said: “The runway at Belfast City Airport has now reopened and normal operations will resume today.

“Passengers impacted by yesterday’s runway closure or those due to travel today should check the status of their flight with the airline before making their way to the airport.”

It is understood that an Aer Lingus regional flight run by Emerald Airlines was involved in the incident on landing and suffered a collapsed nose wheel.

The airport said the incident happened at about 4pm. No serious injuries were reported on the twin-engined turboprop short-haul craft.

A spokesperson for Emerald Airlines said on Sunday: “An Emerald Airlines positioning flight, EA701P, with no passengers on board, flying from Edinburgh to Belfast City Airport, December 22nd, 2024, experienced a hard landing upon arriving into Belfast City Airport due to adverse weather conditions.” – Additional reporting: PA