‘Strange smell’ forces plane en route to Antalya to land in Vienna

ISTANBUL

A Dutch passenger plane en route to Turkey’s Mediterranean province of Antalya made an emergency landing in the Austrian capital Vienna on May 13 after eight passengers fell sick due to a strange smell, BBC Turkish has reported.

The Boeing 737-800 carrying 185 passengers landed in Vienna shortly after its departure from the capital of Netherlands, Amsterdam at 6 a.m.

“What is the matter with our plane? Over eight people are unwell. Transavia [Airlines] flight HV 163. Sit in Vienna now. Was there oxygen shortage? Technical failure? Hope that things get better soon with the sick passengers,” wrote one of the passengers, Hetty Roelofsen, on his Facebook timeline.

Two of the passengers who felt sick were taken to hospital and six others received ambulatory treatment.

The passengers flew to Antalya in a replacement plane after a 5.5-hour delay as the tainted plane was sent back to Amsterdam.

Transavia Airlines has announced that experts have started investigations to find the source of the strange smell.