LONDON— Virgin Atlantic (VS) flight VS148 from Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) to London Heathrow Airport (LHR) diverted to Halifax (YHZ) on June 2 after the crew detected a smoke smell inside the cabin. The Airbus A350-1000, registered G-VLIB, landed safely with no reported injuries.
The widebody jet had only just started its Atlantic crossing when the crew turned back toward the nearest major airport. Ground emergency teams met the aircraft on arrival as a precaution, passengers deplaned safely, and Virgin Atlantic later sent a replacement aircraft to fly them on to London.
Virgin Atlantic A350 Diverted to Halifax
Flight VS148 departed Toronto late on Monday evening and was beginning its eastbound crossing over the Atlantic Ocean when crew members noticed a smoke smell in the aircraft.
Flight tracking data shows the 4.3-year-old twin-engine Airbus A350-1000 (registration G-VLIB) promptly reversed course and headed for the closest suitable airport.
The aircraft touched down in Halifax about 2 hours and 35 minutes after its initial departure from Toronto. Emergency ground crews met the jet on landing as a standard precautionary step, and all passengers were deplaned safely without further incident, Airlive flagged.
Virgin Atlantic Confirms a Technical Issue
Virgin Atlantic confirmed the diversion was caused by a technical fault. In its statement, the airline said the VS148 service from Toronto to London Heathrow on June 1 diverted to Halifax, Canada, on the morning of June 2 after a technical issue produced a smoke smell in the cabin.
The airline added that the safety and security of customers and crew remain its top priority, and that the aircraft landed safely.
To get the affected passengers to their final destination, Virgin Atlantic dispatched a 10.8-year-old replacement aircraft, Boeing 787-9 registered as G-VCRU, to Halifax.
The recovery service operated under flight number VIR148A (VS1148). It boarded the passengers and departed Halifax for London Heathrow on Tuesday evening, then continued across the Atlantic toward the United Kingdom.
The diverted Airbus A350 remained in Halifax, where maintenance teams began inspecting the aircraft to identify the source of the smoke smell. Virgin Atlantic apologized to affected passengers for the disruption to their journeys.
On June 3, 2026, an aircraft operated a reposition flight from Halifax to London and was later deployed on the London-Delhi route.
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