A PASSENGER on a flight from Lanzarote caused the plane to land in Portugal before being removed from the flight. 

Ryanair flight FR3971 from Lanzarote to Bournemouth Airport was forced to divert to Faro Airport in the south of Portugal after a passenger was caught smoking in the toilets. 

The incident happened on the flight leaving Lanzarote Airport on Sunday, November 20 and the plane was grounded for approximately an hour and a half. 

A further technical issue was detected on the flight, believed to be in the toilets, which was inspected by engineers. 

A spokeswoman for Ryanair said: “This flight from Lanzarote to Bournemouth (20 November) diverted to Faro due to a minor technical issue.  

“The aircraft was inspected by engineers and was promptly cleared to return to service, before continuing to Bournemouth where it landed safely at 00:20. 

“Ryanair sincerely apologises to affected passengers for any inconvenience caused by this short delay.” 

It is unclear if the passenger was arrested in Portugal.