An American Airlines flight with 145 people on board made an emergency landing in Iceland Tuesday after five crew members became ill following reports of chemical fumes in the cabin.
American Airlines Flight 49 traveling from Paris to Dallas-Fort Worth landed safely at Keflavik Airport just after 9:45 a.m. EDT. Airport spokesman Fridthor Eydal said mechanics and civil aviation investigators were examining the plane to find the cause of the problem.
"They were apparently having some sort of problems with some sort of fumes in the cabin," said spokesman Tim Smith of American Airlines, a unit of AMR Corp.
Frodi Jonsson, an official at the airport's fire department, said the fumes might be traced to boxes in the hold containing plane parts with oils and liquids. He said the cargo would be examined in an investigation.
"There was nothing unusual going on," he told the Icelandic National Broadcaster when asked whether he suspected a terrorist attack.
The airline said it was sending a replacement plane from London to pick up the 133 passengers and 12 member crew. The replacement flight was due to leave at 4:15 p.m. EDT, according to the airport Web site.
The five crew members were in the cooking area of the Boeing 767-300 when they became ill, Civil Protection Agency officials said in a statement. Eight ambulances and health department were sent to the airport but later withdrawn.
Eydal said the crew members who had complained of dizziness or nausea were treated at the scene and no one was taken to hospital.
Keflavik, Iceland's international airport, is located about 30 miles west of the capital, Reykjavik.