Lightning strike forces Finnair plane to return to Stockholm

Finnair flight AY2650 from Stockholm to Helsinki was hit by lightning on Saturday evening. It was forced to turn back to Stockholm’s Arlanda airport where it underwent inspection

Stockholm’s Arlanda airport said that the event did not lead to any great drama and that the aircraft returned to its departure point merely as a precaution.  The flight left the airport at 8:30pm Swedish time — 9:30pm Finnish time — with 96 passengers onboard.

One passenger, Heidi Palo, said that there was a loud bang when the lightning struck the plane and the lights flickered. Despite this, the atmosphere remained calm.

Palo said that the aircraft had been checked and that it re-embarked at 11:20pm local time.

On Thursday two other Finnair aircraft were hit by lightning.