By JORDANA SEAL

Published: 20:25 BST, 15 June 2025 | Updated: 20:29 BST, 15 June 2025

An easyJet flight bound for Bristol was forced to make an emergency landing after passengers smelt smoke on board.

Just an hour and 20 minutes after leaving Cyprus the pilot was forced to divert the plane and land in Turkey.

The Saturday night flight was supposed to land at Bristol Airport but due to a technical issue, which caused a ‘smoke smell’, its destination switched to Izmir.

A spokesperson for easyJet told MailOnline: ‘We can confirm that flight EZY2902 from Paphos to Bristol diverted to Izmir due to a technical issue which resulted in a smoke smell onboard.

‘The aircraft landed safely in Izmir and was met by emergency services as a routine and precautionary measure only. 

‘All passengers disembarked as normal into the terminal and were provided with hotel accommodation and meals where required. Passengers will continue to Bristol on a replacement aircraft later today.

‘The safety of our customers and crew is easyJet’s highest priority and easyJet operates its fleet of aircraft in strict compliance with all manufacturers’ guidelines.

‘We would like to thank customers for their understanding and apologise for the inconvenience caused.’

File image: The Saturday night flight was supposed to land at Bristol Airport but due to a technical issue, which caused a 'smoke smell', its destination switched to Izmir

File image: The Saturday night flight was supposed to land at Bristol Airport but due to a technical issue, which caused a ‘smoke smell’, its destination switched to Izmir

It comes after an easyJet pilot was suspended after he flew a plane packed with 190 people so dangerously close to a mountain that he nearly crashed into it.

Captain Paul Elsworth was temporarily banned from flying after his plane flew too close over a mountain range as it travelled to Egypt on February 2, triggering a Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS) alarm in the cockpit.

The plane, travelling from Manchester to the Red Sea resort of Hurghada, was very close to crashing as it descended for landing and could have potentially killed the 190 passengers and crew on-board.

The alert rang out ‘pull up, terrain, terrain, pull up, pull up, terrain ahead, pull up’, and only a last second manoeuvre by the pilot to pull up the joystick levelled the Airbus A320 and avoided the mountain range.

Pilots normally clear the mountain range at an altitude of 6,000ft. But Mr Elsworth allegedly flew over the 2,329ft peak at 3,100ft.

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EasyJet flight bound for UK is forced to make emergency landing after ‘passengers smelled smoke’ on board

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