Delta Flight From New York Makes Emergency Landing After Reported Malfunction

A flight from New York to Israel has been forced into an emergency landing due to a malfunction.

Local media reported the plane was able to successfully land at the Ben Gurion on Thursday.

The flight made a report of the malfunction as it approached the city of Tel Aviv. Emergency services were rushed to the site in preparation for the landing and remained on standby.

It is not yet clear what type of malfunction or error the plane suffered that forced it to make an emergency landing.

A Delta spokesperson told Newsweek the decision to proceed with an emergency landing was nade "out of an abundance of caution."

They said: "Delta flight DL232 from New York-JFK to Tel Aviv declared an emergency on approach today (December 30) out of an abundance of caution.

"All customers deplaned normally and safely. Delta's maintenance teams are working to resolve the potential issue.

"The safety of Delta's customers and crew is always our number one priority."

Newsweek has contacted Ben Gurion airport for comment.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Delta Airlines, like many airlines, has seen a reduction in passenger and flight numbers.

Earlier this week Newsweek reported that Delta Airlines CEO Ed Bastian had called for the isolation period to be reduced from 10 days to just five.

Bastian made these comments in a letter to Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, dated December 21. The airline's chief health officer Henry Ting and medical advisor Carlos Del Rio were also signatories to the letter.

Six days later, the CDC issued new advice saying those who have tested positive for COVID-10 but are asymptomatic should now isolate for five days instead of 10.

The timing of the letter and the CDC's latest advice has sparked questions on social media on the influence people in large industries have.

Delta Airlines has made the letter public on its website. The airline also released a statement explaining the request for a shorter isolation period.

The statement read: "Delta CEO Ed Bastian, Chief Health Officer Dr. Henry Ting and the airline's medical advisor Dr. Carlos Del Rio, Distinguished Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Emory University School of Medicine, co-signed a letter to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Tuesday asking the agency to reconsider its current COVID-19 isolation guidance.

"The request comes after analysis by medical experts of data that indicates the Omicron variant has a shorter incubation and infectious period among those who are fully vaccinated against the virus.

In the letter to the CDC, Bastian and Dr. Ting and Dr. Del Rio joined other medical professionals in proposing a shortened isolation period from 10-days to five days for fully vaccinated people who are experiencing a breakthrough infection."