A Ryanair airliner failed to land multiple times, touching down with only three minutes' worth of fuel remaining!
News from CARNOC (Civil Aviation Resource Net of China), September 29, 2026: A recent report by the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) revealed that a Ryanair flight-having made multiple landing attempts due to weather and been denied a request to divert by air traffic control-landed with only three minutes of fuel remaining, narrowly avoiding a catastrophic fuel-exhaustion accident.
The incident occurred on October 3, 2025, involving flight FR3418 (operated by a Boeing 737-800) flying from Pisa, Italy, to Glasgow Prestwick, Scotland. There were 177 people on board, and no injuries were reported.
At the time, Storm Amy was bringing strong winds to the area. The flight was scheduled to land at Prestwick Airport around 6:00 PM, but the crew received wind shear warnings during the flight.
Wind shear can cause a sudden drop in altitude and poses a high risk during the final stages of landing; in accordance with Ryanair's safety protocols, the crew aborted the initial landing attempt and executed a go-around.
However, the second landing attempt also failed due to wind shear warnings. The Ryanair crew immediately requested to divert to Manchester Airport but were refused by air traffic control.
The AAIB stated: "Although the reason for the refusal has not been definitively established, it appears to have stemmed from a breakdown in communication between internal units at Manchester Airport."
"Under the policies of the airport and the ground handling agent, the diversion request should have been accepted."
After the diversion request was denied, the crew attempted to land at Edinburgh Airport instead, but a third attempt at 7:10 PM also failed due to wind shear warnings.
By this point, the flight was critically low on fuel. The crew ultimately decided to make an emergency diversion to Manchester Airport-where weather conditions were stable-and were forced to utilize emergency fuel reserves that are strictly prohibited from use under normal circumstances. The flight carried a total of 1.1 tonnes of emergency reserve fuel; calculations by the onboard flight computer indicated that only 0.3 tonnes remained upon landing.
It is reported that, anticipating adverse weather at the destination, the captain had loaded nearly two tonnes of fuel in excess of regulatory safety requirements prior to takeoff; yet, even with this extra fuel, the flight barely managed to land safely.
Data shows that only 363 kilograms of fuel remained in the tanks at the time of landing; had the landing at Manchester failed and a go-around been required, the fuel would have been completely exhausted within three minutes.
Professional Boeing 737 pilots have noted that a standard go-around maneuver takes approximately eight minutes-sufficient time to trigger a serious flight accident.
By the time the Ryanair flight finally docked at the airbridge and the engines were shut down, only 240 kilograms of fuel remained on board.
The AAIB stated: "Following this serious incident, Manchester Airport reiterated its policy regarding the acceptance of diverted aircraft to all relevant parties."
