Hong Kong flight returns to Heathrow with 'minor fault'
A British Airways plane bound for Hong Kong has had to return to Heathrow after developing a "minor technical fault".
The BA0025 747 flight, which took off at 18:20 BST with 298 passengers on board, landed safely at about 21:15 after being redirected.
One passenger said people on the flight were "happy to be back on land".
The aircraft has been examined by engineers and the flight rescheduled for Tuesday.
Passenger Ashley Steel told the BBC: "They spotted very quickly that the plane had a technical issue.
"We flew over the sea for 90 minutes dropping fuel prior to returning.
"Really the whole thing felt like a detour - it was really well handled by the staff. Most people on the plane are happy to be back on land."
A spokesman for air traffic company NATS said the flight crew relayed that the plane had a problem retracting its undercarriage.
He said time was spent in the air to make sure the aircraft was a safe weight for landing. He added such redirections are "not uncommon".
A BA spokesman said passengers had been offered hotel accommodation.
He apologised for the inconvenience and said the cause of the fault had not been established.