An Air France Airbus A350-900 diverted to Brest after the flight crew reported an unusual odour in the cockpit during a long haul service from Paris to Colombia.
The aircraft landed safely in Brest, and the airline returned its passengers to Paris before they continued their journey the following day.
Flight AF436 Diverts to Brest
The aircraft, registered F-HTYB, was operating flight AF436 from Paris Charles de Gaulle to Bogota.
The A350 was cruising at FL370 around 80 nautical miles south of Brest when the crew identified an unusual odour in the cockpit.
The pilots decided to divert and turned towards Brest, which lay a short distance to the north of their position.
Air France confirmed that the unusual odour prompted the diversion to Brest.
Why Crews Take Cockpit Odours Seriously
Flight crews treat any unexplained smell on the flight deck with caution, and this is what happened with the Brest Emergency landing.
An odour can point to overheating equipment, an electrical fault or contaminated air, and crews cannot inspect most of these systems in flight.
Over water on a long transatlantic sector, the safest option is often to land early rather than continue.
The crew of AF436 were still close to the French coast, with Brest nearby, which made the diversion a straightforward decision.
Air France has not disclosed the source of the odour.
Passengers Returned to Paris
After landing in Brest, the airline returned the passengers to Paris.
They then travelled to Bogota the following day.
Air France assigned a replacement A350-900, registered F-HTYM, to operate the service.
The replacement aircraft reached Bogota with a delay of about 21 hours.
F-HTYB Leaves Brest
The occurrence aircraft remained on the ground in Brest for about 26 hours.
It then positioned back to Paris Charles de Gaulle without passengers.
F-HTYB spent a further 18 hours on the ground in Paris before Air France returned it to service.
About the Aircraft
F-HTYB, the aircraft involved in the Brest emergency landing, is an Airbus A350-941 with manufacturer serial number 349.
The aircraft first flew on 5 October 2019 from the Airbus production site in Toulouse under the test registration F-WZFQ.
Air France took delivery of the aircraft on 29 October 2019.
It ferried from Toulouse to Paris Charles de Gaulle on 6 November 2019 and entered service two days later on 8 November 2019.
The aircraft carries the name Lyon and is now around seven years old.
It seats 324 passengers across three cabins, with 34 business seats, 24 premium economy seats and 266 economy seats.
Two Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-84 engines power the aircraft.
A Precautionary Diversion
The Brest diversion shows how quickly crews act when something feels wrong on the flight deck.
The aircraft landed safely, passengers reached Bogota the following day and F-HTYB returned to service within two days of the incident.
The Aviation Hub will update this story if Air France or the French authorities release further details on the cause of the odour.
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