READ MORE: Plane heading to the UK had to make an unscheduled stop after a bungling airport worker 'left his headphones attached to the front landing gear' See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy ERIN DEBORAH WAKS, TRAVEL WRITER Published: 09:41 BST, 9 June 2026 | Updated: 09:41 BST, 9 June 2026
A plane heading from Guernsey to Manchester had to make an unscheduled stop after the aircraft windscreen reportedly cracked mid-flight.Aurigny flight GR678 left at 5.17pm on Sunday, 7 June, but had to stop in Southampton shortly afterwards, making a precautionary emergency landing.The aircraft made a U-turn above Basingstoke in Hampshire, not long into the hour-long journey.In a statement, Aurigny said: 'Aurigny can confirm that flight GR678, on 7 June, en route from Guernsey to Manchester, diverted to Southampton airport as a result of a cracked windscreen experienced in flight.'In line with standard operating procedures, the flight crew carried out a precautionary emergency landing. Passengers and crew are safe and well.'We thank our passengers for their patience and understanding - their safety, and that of our team, is our priority.'The airline arranged for coaches to take passengers to Manchester.It added that it used a different aircraft for the return flight back to Guernsey, according to the Independent. Aurigny flight GR678, heading to Manchester, was forced to divertAurigny Air Services is the flag carrier airline of Guernsey.It offers direct flights to the UK, Ireland, and France, serving major British airports such as London Gatwick, Birmingham, Manchester, Exeter, Southampton and Bristol.It's not the only flight to make an emergency landing as of late.Earlier this year, a Ryanair flight was forced to make an emergency diversion on its way to Manchester. The Boeing 737 Max aircraft set off on April 24, 2025 from Venice with 191 passengers on board. But the flight had to divert to London Stansted after pilots became concerned over a possible fuel leak.There have even been other reports of diversions as a result of cracked windscreens.Last year, United Airlines flight 1093, which had taken off from Denver, Colorado and was on its way to Los Angeles, California on 16 October, was forced to make an emergency landing when a layer of the cockpit's main window was damaged.Also last year, a woman who boarded a Wizz Air flight to Romania found a cracked window in the row behind her.Ana Savin, 39, was flying from Luton Airport to Bacău Airport on August 28, 2025 when she noticed that the window was completely cracked.According to Ana, some passengers panicked, concerned about how the broken window might affect their safety during the flight.The Wizz Air flight was delayed for nearly four hours, although it was unclear how much of the delay was due to the window issue.
