British Airways flight lands in Edinburgh instead of Dusseldorf

A British Airways flight from London to Dusseldorf in Germany accidentally landed in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Passengers were puzzled as to how the flight managed to fly over 500km in the wrong direction, without anyone realising the error.

British Airways stated a mistake in the flight plan paperwork was to blame for the error.

The flight landed in a city 843km away from where it was supposed to.
The flight landed in a city 843km away from where it was supposed to. Photo credit: FlightRadar24.com/Newshub.

The flight was operated by an aircraft and crew from WDL Aviation under a leasing agreement with British Airways. 

The aircraft had flown from London to Edinburgh the evening before, so it's believed the same flight plan was mistakenly entered the following morning.

Passengers onboard told the BBC they thought the crew was joking when they were welcomed to Edinburgh over the PA system.

The captain then reportedly asked passengers who thought they were heading to Germany to raise their hands. Everyone did.

Passengers also complained of blocked toilets and a lack of food while they waited to be flown to their intended destination.

Son Tran, who was onboard, sent a tweet to the airline about the mix-up. 

"Can you please explain how can my morning flight taking off from LCY to Dusseldorf land in Edinburgh? While an interesting concept, I don't think anyone onboard has signed up for this mystery travel lottery."

Others joked that it was a sign of things to come as the country heads for Brexit.

British Airways confirmed the flight made it to its intended destination a few hours late and passengers were given the equivalent of NZ$400 in compensation for the delays.

Newshub.