United flight from San Francisco to Amsterdam makes emergency landing
A United Airlines flight destined for Amsterdam made an emergency landing Monday morning with broadcaster CTV saying the aircraft lost cabin pressure above eastern Canada. United flight 986 rapidly descended to 10,000 feet nearly five hours after departing San Francisco and flew over Quebec and New Brunswick before landing in Bangor, Maine in the northeastern United States.
Some 197 passengers and 13 crew members were on board the Boeing 787-9, the AP reported, when it safely landed in Maine at about 7:15 a.m. Netherlands time. There were no injuries.
One CTV reporter wrote on social media that the plane had issues with pressurization, air conditioning, and possibly hydraulics.
The international airport is the closest US Port of Entry from Europe, according to documents from the facility. Customs officers are stationed there around the clock, and the airport is qualified to handle emergency services for prisoner transfers and in-flight medical issues.
The flight was scheduled to depart San Francisco at 11:55 p.m. Netherlands time. San Francisco was nine hours behind the Netherlands at the time of departure.
Passengers were expected to spend the night in Bangor, before being flown to Newark, New Jersey, where they would board a different aircraft bound for Amsterdam, United told the AP. Passengers were scheduled to arrive at Schiphol on Tuesday morning.
