A United Airlines Boeing 757-200, which took off from Dublin and headed for Newark, New Jersey, was forced to return to the departure airport a few minutes after takeoff. As reported by Aviation Herald, the aircraft had just reached the cruising altitude of 31,000 feet when the crew aborted the climb. According to the specialized newspaper, there was a strong smell of fuel on board which caused feelings of sickness and headaches for several passengers and cabin crew members.
No anomalies
However, the pilots did not find any fuel leaks. Given the situation on board, the crew contacted air traffic control to declare their immediate return, requesting medical assistance on the ground and reporting that the plane would make an overloaded landing while still having full tanks for the ocean crossing.
The landing occurred safely on runway 28R at Dublin Airport approximately 55 minutes after departure. Once the taxiing towards the apron was completed, the medics came on board to provide first aid to the passengers and flight attendants affected by the illness. The flight was canceled to allow technical checks on the plane and find out the cause of the strange smell.