What was likely a frightening few minutes on an Air Canada flight, Thursday morning in Halifax.
In a statement to our newsroom, the Halifax Airport Authority says shortly after taking off, a flight to Newark, New Jersey, operated by Provincial (PAL) Airlines, declared an emergency and put a request into the Halifax Tower to return to the airport.
“The aircraft returned and safely landed a short time later. Halifax Stanfield’s Emergency Response Services (ERS) team was prepared and waiting to respond as needed. Our ERS team inspected the aircraft upon arrival on the runway and it was determined that the aircraft could taxi on its own back to the terminal building to deplane the passengers on board.”
Spokesperson for PAL Airlines Joe Galimberti, would not confirm social media reports that one of the plane’s wheels was on fire, but in a statement to our newsroom, they did confirm they had received a report of “a potential issue with one of the aircraft’s tires”.
Galimberti says the plane returned around 11:35 a.m., Thursday, and passengers on board are now being rebooked.
