A British Airways flight en route to Portugal was forced to return to Gatwick Airport on Tuesday due to a minor technical issue, reported to be a cracked window.

Flight BA2660 was heading to Faro in the Algarve but diverted over north-western France in order to return to London Gatwick.

AirNav Radar, a flight data provider, posted on X that “a passenger window is cracked. Flight deck going through checks before deciding were to divert”.

A spokesperson for British Airways said the plane landed safely at Gatwick due to a “minor technical issue” and passengers were due to resume their journey.

“We have apologised to customers for the delay to their journey, and our teams are working hard to get their travel plans back on track,” they said.

Airnav Radar reported that the BA Airbus A321 squawked the 7700 emergency code, which is used when there are mechanical or technical problems on board aircraft.

Last week, a BA flight bound for Chicago spent five hours circling over Ireland, before turning back and landing at London Heathrow, where it had taken off.

The flight issued an emergency alert and passengers reported oxygen masks dropped in the cabin, as well as turbulence. Tracking data showed it rapidly descended from 37,000 feet to 9,000 feet.

And in August Serbian national Ljubisa Karović’s head and right shoulder were sucked out of the window on a Ryanair flight, leaving him “seriously injured and in shock”.

Ryanair subsequently said the window may have been damaged by a foreign object. (BBC)