So What happened on Flight AA109? Plane return to Heathrow after Crew and Passengers fell ill

So what happened on trans-Atlantic flight AA109? Up to six cabin crew members and two passengers, including a man said to be in his 60s and another in his 40s, are believed to have felt faint some 1,600miles into the 5,500mile flight.

Investigators are this morning trying to find out what caused a flight attendant to collapse and seven other people to be taken ill in a mid-air drama on a trans-Atlantic flight.

Panicked passengers told of the moment a plea went out for any doctors on-board the American Airlines flight, before the captain declared a 'medical emergency' and returned to London.
Emergency vehicles were scrambled and, once on the ground, the aborted Los Angeles-bound flight was escorted to a terminal at Heathrow, where passengers were told to remain in their seats.
It has since emerged that those on-board were not allowed to disembark, nor paramedics allowed on to treat the sick, until tests had been carried out for any 'elevated levels of substances' in the cabin air.

All luggage was then taken for 'checks' by American Airlines and airport authorities, but passengers were not informed of the reason.

The airline said last night that passengers were being reunited with their bags, but a spokesman would not reveal what checks had been carried out or whether anything had been found.
He added: 'American Airlines, and Heathrow authorities, were inspecting bags and cargo', before revealing that the airline's maintenance team was now carrying out a 'thorough inspection of the aircraft.'

Alan Gray, 41, who told of how flight AA109 was given an escort by emergency services as it taxied to the terminal, said he and his fellow passengers had not been given an explanation about why their bags were confiscated.