Mid-air emergency forces SriLankan flight to turn back to Melbourne

A SriLankan Airlines flight has turned back to Melbourne following an incident shortly after take-off on Monday evening (12 Feb.), Australian media reported.

SriLankan Airlines flight UL605 left Melbourne Airport just after 6.30pm (AEST) but declared an emergency soon after and requested to return to Victoria.

The Airbus A330 landed safely back in Melbourne at 7.24pm.

The scare was sparked by reports of smoke in the cockpit, according to Travel Talk.

The airline didn’t address that directly, but said it had identified a “technical issue”.

“All passengers onboard disembarked safely,” SriLankan Airlines told 7NEWS.com.au.

“A team of technicians is currently assessing the aircraft and providing technical support.”

The plane was met by emergency services on landing.

“In line with Melbourne Airport procedures, a local standby was declared, with emergency services responding as a precaution,” an airport spokesperson said.

The flight had been headed for Colombo prior to the interruption.

Meanwhile the national carrier SriLankan Airlines has issued the following statement on the incident:

SriLankan Airlines Statement on Flight UL 605 by Adaderana Online on Scribd

- With input from 7NEWS