Goose Bay Airport had a couple of heavies on the ramp for a few hours earlier this week as yet another airline crew took advantage of the former Strategic Air Command Base’s 11,000-foot runway for an emergency diversion. An El Al Boeing 747-400 was about 200 miles out over the Atlantic on its way from New York to Tel Aviv when a wheel well fire warning light illuminated. No corresponding heat indicators lit up but the crew turned around and headed for Goose Bay for an uneventful landing about 4 a.m..
The 747 and its 400 passengers sat on the ramp for 13 hours in temperatures of about -30. El Al sent a replacement 747 from New York and transferring the passengers and baggage took about four hours. The flight finally made it to Tel Aviv about a day after its scheduled arrival time. The warning light turned out to be a sensor problem.