VARA A320 near Adelaide on Mar 3rd 2023, first officer incapacitated

[Greg Hyde]

Incident: VARA A320 near Adelaide on Mar 3rd 2023, first officer incapacitated

By Simon Hradecky, created Sunday, Mar 5th 2023 19:20Z, last updated Wednesday, Mar 8th 2023 10:09Z

A VARA Virgin Australia Regional Airlines Airbus A320-200, registration VH-VNB performing flight VA-717 from Adelaide,SA to Perth,WA (Australia), was enroute at FL320 about 240nm westnorthwest of Adelaide about 30 minutes into the flight when the first officer suffered a heart attack and became incapacitated. The captain declared PAN PAN and returned the aircraft to Adelaide for a safe landing on runway 23 about 70 minutes later.

The flight was cancelled.

The aircraft remained on the ground for about 25 hours before returning to service.

On Mar 8th 2023 Virgin Australia reported: "We can confirm that the First Officer on board VA717 on 3 March became ill during the flight, requiring a return to Adelaide in line with safety protocols. The aircraft landed safely in Adelaide and passengers were reaccommodated on the next available flights. The First Officer was taken to hospital for observation and was later reported to be okay. "

https://avherald.com/h?article=505ff721&opt=0

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