Second Helios jet had reported trouble

Emergency services were put on stand-by at a British airport after a Helios 737 jet reported mechanical problems on the same day another crashed in Greece, killing all 121 people on board, it emerged today.

The pilot of the scheduled service from Larnaca, Cyprus, radioed problems with the plane’s flaps before coming into land at Birmingham International Airport on Saturday.

An airport spokeswoman stressed it was not a full emergency but fire crews were put on a lower level of alert – “local standby” – and tailed the plane as it touched down and taxied.

Another 737 operated by the Cypriot airline came down in mountains near Athens on Saturday evening, killing its 115 passengers, including 48 children, and six crew.

Two Greek F-16 fighter jets were sent to intercept the plane after it apparently suffered a catastrophic loss of cabin pressure or oxygen minutes before it was due to land.