WestJet plane bound for St. John's makes emergency landing in Halifax

A WestJet flight heading to St. John's from Halifax made an emergency landing at Halifax Stanfield International Airport Thursday morning due to concerns about its landing gear.

WestJet Encore flight 3428, a Bombardier ​Q400 turboprop plane carrying 82 people, took off at 7:53 a.m., a WestJet spokesperson said. The plane landed safely back in Halifax shortly at 9:41 a.m.

"The flight crew received an indication of a potential issue with the nose landing gear," WestJet's Morgan Bell said in an emailed statement. "Out of an abundance of caution, the crew performed an air turn back to Halifax." 

The plane circled the airport before landing because it was trying to burn off fuel and reduce its weight, Bell said. 

Theresa Rath Spicer, speaking for the Halifax airport, said emergency crews including firefighters were on standby. 

She said after the plane landed it was able to taxi to a gate under its own power.

WestJet said its maintenance team will be inspecting the aircraft. Everyone made it off the plane safely, the airline said. 

In an email, a spokesperson for Transport Canada said the department is aware of two other similar instances involving the Bombardier Q400 turboprop plane since Jan. 1, 2018.

"All instances have been managed according to the operators' safety procedures and conducted to ensure a safe landing," wrote Marie-Anyk Côté.