Passengers on flight to Mauritius returned after ‘technical problem’

After a 7:38pm takeoff and hours in the air, travelers en route to Mauritius may have dreamed of waking up in paradise.

But sun-seekers on a British Airways night flight had hopes of warm weather when they landed… at Gatwick.

The airline blamed a “technical problem” for the decision to fly 2,200 miles back to the UK early yesterday morning after its Boeing 777 developed problems over Egypt.

The plane – on a planned 12-hour journey – flew over France, Switzerland, Italy and the Mediterranean before turning at midnight and landing at 4.45am.

While the flight was pushed back to departure last night, the cancellation also left hundreds of returning passengers stranded on the Indian Ocean island for an extra day.

In an email about the delay, British Airways apologized for the inconvenience and said they could charge “reasonable costs for hotel accommodation, local transport and any essentials you might need overnight”.

Passengers are also entitled to claim £520 each under European Air Passenger Compensation rules.

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