Jet2 flight to from Leeds-Bradford to Split declares emergency right after take-off

A passenger jet from the UK has diverted to Manchester Airport after declaring an emergency shortly after taking off on Sunday morning.

Jet2 flight LS245 took off from Leeds-Bradford Airport at 7.52am bound for Split in Croatia.

The plane squawked a 7700 emergency code shortly afterwards.

Flight trackers showed the plane circling over areas of Yorkshire before diverting to Manchester - where it landed at around 8.41am.

Jet2 confirmed the alert was due to a 'technical issue' on board.

A Squawk 7700 means there is an issue on board the aircraft.

It alerts ground crews at airports that there is a problem on board.

The Squawk can other a range of issues including technical problems on board the aircraft.

It can also include factors such as medical emergencies on board.

A Jet2 spokesperson said:  "We can confirm that flight LS245 followed standard operating procedure and requested a priority landing at Manchester Airport this morning (Sunday July 14), due to a technical issue.

"The aircraft landed safely, and customers will be transferred onto a replacement aircraft. We do of course apologise for the delay to the start of their holidays.”

The Express has contacted Leeds-Bradford Airport and Manchester Airport for comment.