Ryanair flight makes emergency landing after captain falls ill

THE co-pilot of a Ryanair flight from England to Norway was forced to turn the jet around and land by himself after his captain fell ill at the controls.

Ryanair flight FR9128 left Liverpool’s John Lennon Airport at 7.15pm on Sunday destined for Rygge Airport, 66km south of Olso in Norway.

The Boeing 737-800 had reached its cruising altitude of 39,000 feet and was over the North Sea about 300km east of Dundee in Scotland when the captain fell ill and was unable to continue his duties. As a result, the first officer (co-pilot) assumed all flying and radio communications duties and contacted air traffic controllers to inform them he was declaring a medical emergency.