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Transavia airplanes at Schiphol. April 21, 2007
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Thursday, 7 May 2015 - 08:50
Sudden loss of cabin pressure forces Transavia flight to land
A Transavia Boeing 737-700, which was en route from Eindhoven to Lisbon, had to make an emergency landing in Lille due to a sudden loss of cabin pressure on Wednesday afternoon.
According to NOS, the plane first lost pressure on the left side at a height of 9 kilometers. A few seconds later the same happened on the right side. Passengers could smell something burning in the back of the plane.
The oxygen masks came down and the pilot started an emergency landing. The plane dove from a height of 9 kilometers to 3 kilometers in 6 minutes - this usually takes about 20 minutes. As the pilots were also wearing oxygen masks, they couldn't inform the passengers about the emergency landing until they were at an altitude of 3 kilometers.
One of the passengers told NOS that a number of people became unwell during the 6 kilometer fall. According to the passenger, no one was panicking on the plane, there was a "deadly quiet".
The plane, which took off just after 5 p.m., landed safely, according to a spokesperson for Transavia. Passengers flew the rest of the way to Lisbon that same night. Those who did not want to continue, were given the option to take a bus back to Eindhoven.