A passenger on an easyJet flight that made an emergency landing has described how he "thought he was going to die" when the aircraft filled with what he believed was smoke during a journey from Cyprus to Bristol.
Jamie Shorland, 21, from Exeter, was returning from visiting his grandfather when the flight diverted to Izmir, Turkey, approximately one hour and 20 minutes after departure on Saturday, June 14.
The incident sparked panic amongst passengers, with Shorland claiming people were screaming "we are going to die!" as the aircraft began its unexpected descent whilst flying west of Turkey.
Initially delayed by 30 minutes, the flight departed Paphos at 10.30pm bound for Bristol Airport.
Shorland, who was travelling with a friend, said he noticed something was wrong when cabin crew were instructed to stow the catering trolleys.
Jamie Shorland said smoke alarms had activated during the flight,
Shorland said: "The air cabin crew were told to put away the catering trolleys, whilst we were told no information at all."
He claimed passengers were informed there would be an emergency landing but received no explanation from airline staff about what was happening.
Shorland alleged that smoke alarms had activated during the flight, though easyJet has disputed this claim, stating no alarms went off during the incident.
The terrified passengers believed they were flying over water when the emergency began, heightening fears of a sea crash.
"We were above the water, so we thought we'd crash into the sea, there was pure panic and none of the crew were helpful," Shorland recalled.
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An easyJet flight erupted into chaos (stock pic)PA"I thought to myself 'this is how it ends', people were screaming 'we are going to die!'" he said.
One father attempted to reach his children during the chaos, with Shorland describing how the man "rushed up the plane to hug his kids and the airline staff told him to go back to his seat."
The father reportedly told staff to "f**k off, if I am going to die I am going to be with my kids."
However, easyJet maintained that there was no emergency command for passengers to brace and that the landing was conducted normally.
Shorland described the experience as traumatic, saying: "I was trying to think happy thoughts of my family as we fell through the sky."
Upon landing in Izmir, emergency services followed the aircraft down the runway, with firefighters boarding to investigate the source of the smell.
Passengers remained on board for 20 minutes before being told of a suspected cooling system fault.
EasyJet provided accommodation across three hotels, but passengers were asked to leave at noon on Sunday despite being told they could stay until 6pm. The rescheduled flight eventually departed at 11pm, landing at Bristol at 12.30am on Monday.
"We will never get on a plane again, I've never been so scared of flying, it was the worst experience of my life," Shorland said.
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