Flight To Luton Diverted Because Of Technical Glitch

Already under the microscope after one of its 737s crashed mysteriously in Greece Sunday, Cyprus's Helios Airways moved a little closer to the flame of public opinion Friday when one of its planes had to be diverted to a different airport because of a suspected technical problem.

Flight ZU400, which had departed Larnaca, Cyprus, at 0700 local time, was due to land at Britain's Luton Airport at 0950. But the aircraft was diverted to Stansted after the pilot reported a suspected control surface problem.

Weather at Stansted was reported low overcast with heavy rain -- perhaps another factor in the pilot's decision to divert.

"The pilot thought he had a flaps problem but the aircraft landed all right," said a spokeswoman at Stansted, quoted by the London Times.

The 737 that landed at Stansted carried 177 passengers and an unknown number of crewmembers. No one was hurt.

It was as if Helios's problems were snowballing. Last Saturday, one day before the Greek tragedy that left 121 passengers and crew dead, the pilot of yet another Helios 737 told the control tower in Birmingham, England, that he had flap problems and emergency responders were put on alert. As was the case Friday, that aircraft landed without incident.

FMI: www.flyhelios.com