A British Airways plane aborted its landing yesterday after a large cruise ship strayed into its flight path as it sailed from Gibraltar.

Shocked passengers watched as the plane pulled out of its final approach and climbed over the Princess Cruises’ vessel Crown Princess.

 

“By the time we did the final turn, it was obvious to me that we would not clear the ship,” one passenger told the Chronicle.

He said the pilot told passengers over the plane’s PA system that he had aborted because of the passenger ship.

But a spokesman for the Ministry of Defence, which is ultimately responsible for air traffic control, said the aircrew had been notified of the vessel’s presence while still some miles from Gibraltar.

“It was not shock horror,” the MoD spokesman said, adding that after visually assessing the situation, the crew had opted to circle the Rock before landing. The exact position of the cruise ship is not clear but admiralty rules establish an exclusion zone at either end of the runway.