Aurigny deny smoke claim

Tuesday 3rd February 2004, 12:00AM GMT.

AURIGNY has denied the claims of passengers that the cockpit of one of its flights filled with smoke as it crossed the Channel.

Those on board the Shorts 360, which is used for many Jersey routes, described their terror to the JEP on Sunday when they realised that what they thought was mist was actually smoke from a faulty engine.

The pilot was forced to shut down the engine and fly the 20 minutes to Guernsey on just one engine.

The plane landed safely.A spokesman for the Guernsey States-owned airline said: ‘There was no evidence of smoke in the aircraft’s cabin.

The captain noted an irregular pressure reading in the aircraft’s starboard engine approximately 20 minutes prior to arrival in Guernsey.’A small quantity of vaporised oil was released into the cabin in the form of a fine mist before the engine was shut down in line with standard operating procedures.’

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