Flying over London, an Air France 777 experienced engine issues prompting a return to Paris CDG.
On January 4th, a Boeing 777-300ER operated by Air France experienced engine issues on a flight from Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) to Los Angeles (LAX). Flying over London, the crew members decided to divert and return the aircraft to Paris.
Air France Boeing 777
An Air France 777-300ER with the registration F-GSQL was operating flight AF72 from Paris CDG Airport to Los Angeles Airport on January 4th when it had engine issues and had to return to its starting airport.
According to The Aviation Herald, the crew “discovered irregularities” with one of the aircraft’s GE90 powerplants as the plane was at FL300 (30,000 feet), around 20NM northeast of London. Following a lack of oil pressure, the crew members turned the engine down and plummeted to FL 150.
The plane is reported to have turned around and returned to Paris while spewing fuel in the process. The airplane turned towards Le Havre after passing slightly east of Rouen, according to flight monitoring information. The 777 then began to descend toward Paris while flying in a wide circle, arriving safely on runway 27L around 100 minutes after takeoff.
According to Air France, there was an issue with the engine oil system, which is why this aircraft had to land back in Paris. According to data from FlightRadar24.com, flight AF72’s scheduled departure for January 4th was delayed; the next scheduled departure took place the next day.
Over three days after the incident, F-GSQL is still on the ground at Paris Charles de Gaulle as of the time this article was published.