By Hannah Esnouf

Copyright jerseyeveningpost

AN Islander who was onboard a Blue Islands flight over the weekend has described her ordeal after the aircraft was suddenly struck by lightning.

Collette Bisson was one of several passengers on a Southampton-bound journey early on Saturday morning, and described episodes of the plane “plummeting ” in the sky after being hit by the powerful electric current on the side of the left plane’s wing.

Mrs Bisson described how once struck, fellow passengers began screaming and others had to reach for sick bags, from the sudden drops in altitude.

Despite the panic, she commended the cabin crew who “did well” to reassure passengers and handed out bottles of water. Mrs Bisson also praised the captain for stabilising the aircraft once through the storm, where it landed in Southampton as expected.

“The rest of the journey was much smoother,” she said.

Blue Islands has since thanked and apologised to passengers on that flight, and those who were impacted in the days following.

The airline confirmed that the aircraft in question is undergoing inspections by their engineering team.

A spokesperson added that “unrelated technical issues” also affected operations on other routes over the weekend, including an aircraft that had to return to Jersey as a “precaution” shortly after departing for East Midlands on Sunday.

That plane has now returned to service following an inspection, Blue Islands said.

Brief adverse weather on Sunday evening also impacted a journey from Guernsey to Southampton flight.

“We fully appreciate how frustrating and disruptive it is when travel plans are impacted, and we are sorry for the inconvenience caused,” the spokesperson added.

“We thank everyone for their patience and understanding.”