[Update] Brussels Airlines flight to Yerevan, hit by lightning strike, returns to Brussels Airport

On 28 December, Brussels Airlines flight SN2899 to Yerevan, Armenia, returned to Brussels Airport due to a lightning strike on the aircraft (Airbus A320 registered OO-SNN in Eurowings livery).

The fully-booked flight (180 passengers) took off from Brussels Airport at 13:55 (UTC+1), three-quarters of an hour late.

It had reached an altitude of 22,500 feet above the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg when the event occurred. The pilots immediately decided to return to Brussels Airport for a safe landing at 14:40 attended by the fire brigade.

Due to crew duty limitations, the flight was postponed by 24 hours and the passengers were accommodated in nearby hotels.

The flight will now operate as follows with the same aircraft (A320 OO-SNN):

SN1839/29DEC: BRU STD 13h10 – 20h30 STA EVN
SN1840/29DEC: EVN STD 21h30 – 23h25 STA BRU

Update

Recent aeroplanes are designed to withstand lightning strikes, and that’s even part of the certification requirements. In most cases, a lightning strike does not involve any change in the flight plan. Why did the Airbus A320 registered OO-SNN return to Brussels instead of continuing to Yerevan after the impact? Aviation24.be asked the question to Brussels Airlines and here is the reply of their technical department conveyed by spokeswoman Kim Daenen:

“It’s true that an aircraft can continue after a lightning strike, however, there is an obligation to perform a technical inspection after landing to assess if there is any damage caused by the strike. As there was a big risk to be stuck in Yerevan if there would be damage, it was decided by our technical department to return the aircraft to base, where indeed, damage was found.”