An Air China flight from London to Beijing had to make an emergency landing at Gatwick yesterday.
The aircraft took off as scheduled at 1.30pm but landed almost two hours later after reportedly dumping fuel, which is usually done to lighten the aircraft or reduce the risk of fire.
A Gatwick spokesman told The Independent that the runway was closed for 20 minutes shortly after 3.20pm but the aircraft was moved to a stand.
The Airbus landed safely and no injuries were reported on board.
The reason for landing was not immediately known but police were not seen on the scene after it landed.
Flight CA852 declared an emergency shortly after take-off and data from Flightradar showed it circling over Sussex and the English Channel at 8,000ft before returning to the airport, the newspaper reported.