Delta Flight Does U-Turn Halfway Across Atlantic

Delta passengers bound for Nigeria spent nearly eight hours in the air, only to end up back where they started. Delta Flight DL54 from Atlanta to Lagos on Saturday evening made it about halfway across the Atlantic before the crew turned the Airbus A330-200 around and headed home. The airline cited only an unspecified "operational issue" for the decision, which had the jet reversing course over the ocean rather than diverting to Europe or the Azores.

The plane left Atlanta at 5:42pm EDT, initiated its U-turn around 9:15pm, and landed back at Hartsfield-Jackson at about 1:30am Sunday, logging roughly 7 hours and 48 minutes of flight time, AirLive reports. Delta canceled the flight after the plane's return; the 21-year-old aircraft remained in Atlanta for inspection. SimplyFlying notes that Delta still routinely uses its aging A330-200 aircraft on long-haul international routes, though the airline has been gradually modernizing its fleet with Airbus A330-900 and A350 aircraft.