Plane aborts flight as both pilots nearly pass out

A British Airways jet was forced to rush back to Heathrow Airport and make an emergency landing after both pilots fell ill and almost passed out at the same time.

The captain and first officer began feeling light headed soon after the Airbus A321 took off on the London-to-Glasgow flight on January 7, the Daily Mail reports.

Passengers heard the captain sound panicked as he called for the cabin crew's help about 20 minutes into the flight.

"A very abrupt and panicked message came over the PA from the pilot," one passenger told a professional pilots website.

The passenger said he then saw flight attendants rush to the cockpit with oxygen cylinders and the plane was soon heading back to Heathrow "at great speed".

Cabin crew told passengers the aircraft was experiencing technical problems and the plane was met by paramedics, fire crews and engineers when it landed.

A British Airways spokesman confirmed the pilots had both felt unwell and followed procedure by putting on oxygen masks and aborting the flight.

The incident is now being investigated by British aviation authorities.

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