Newquay flight lands safely after diversion

BBC Cornwall Airport Newquay departures entrance. There is a sign that says 'Cornwall Airport Newquay', next to a sign in yellow which says 'departures'.BBC
Eastern Airways said a cockpit warning light appeared during the T3 458 service from London Gatwick Airport to Newquay

A flight scheduled to land at Cornwall Airport Newquay was diverted to Exeter as "a precaution", an airline operator has said.

Eastern Airways said a cockpit warning light for "a flap configuration issue" appeared during the T3 458 service from London Gatwick Airport to Newquay on Tuesday night.

It said the warning light appeared during the approach into Newquay and as a result a decision was made to divert the ATR 72-600 plane to Exeter to avoid the "strong and gusting winds".

The operator said the light "extinguished" on the descent to Exeter and the aircraft made a "normal and safe" landing.

'Safety is top priority'

"The passengers were then transported by road to Newquay while the aircraft underwent engineering checks as a precaution," it said.

"The aircraft will not be released back into service until the cause of the spurious warning light has been identified.

"We would like to apologise to our customers who were affected by this diversion but reassure everyone that safety is always our top priority at Eastern Airways."

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