The plane spent close to four hours flying in circles near Madrid, burning off fuel before it was light enough for landing. Spain’s Defense Ministry dispatched an F18 fighter jet to evaluate the damage done to the landing gear. A spokeswoman with Spain’s airport operator, AENA, told the AP that the airline had requested a slot for an emergency landing some 30 minutes after takeoff. A spokesman for Enaire, Spain’s air navigation authority, said the plane’s landing gear did not fold up properly on taking off and that a piece of it may have damaged part of one of the engines. Earlier on Monday, the airport closed for over an hour due to the reported sighting of drones in the vicinity.

Source: Washington Post February 03, 2020 16:12 UTC