Concerns have again been raised about the safety of Bristol Airport's runway after a plane delayed landing in wet weather conditions on Monday evening.
Laurence Robertson MP said the pilot of the Easyjet flight from Belfast he was travelling on told passengers he had been advised it was unsafe to land.
He said the area had experienced a heavy downpour and the plane would circle until the runway had dried out.
Bristol Airport said cross-winds and rain caused the pilot to delay landing.
Mr Robertson, MP for Tewkesbury, said the cabin crew had already taken their seats before the plane began to ascend again.
"I thought as they were circling there was probably a queue to land at the airport, as there's nothing unusual about that," he said.
The problem has to be fixed... we can't have planes landing on a runway which might not be safe in all circumstances
Laurence Robertson MP
"But then the captain came on and said 'you've obviously heard about the difficulties they've had in Bristol. We've been advised it wouldn't be safe to land if it's too wet and as there's been a bit of a very heavy downpour, we can't land just yet as we have to wait for the runway to dry off.' "
Mr Roberston said the plane circled for about 20 minutes before it landed.
"I thought, why are they actually using this runway if they are admitting that on occasions it's not safe? Incredible.
"The problem has to be fixed. We can't have planes landing on a runway which might not be safe in all circumstances - it has to be safe. And it really does need sorting out - it obviously hasn't," he said.
In a statement Easyjet said: "Last night (Monday) easyJet flight EZY 452 from Belfast to Bristol, circled prior to landing for approximately five minutes due to high winds and rain at Bristol International Airport, this is standard operating procedure in adverse weather conditions and the aircraft landed normally.
"At no stage did the captain advise passengers the 'runway was unsafe'."
'Landed normally'
Paul Rankin, service delivery manager at the airport, said the airport keeps pilots informed of landing conditions so that they can take these factors into account when deciding whether to land.
He said the decision to land remains with the pilot at all times.
"In this instance steady cross-winds and rain resulted in the pilot's decision to go around in accordance with his standard operating procedure," he said.
"Normal operations continued, with other aircraft landing and departing during this period. The aircraft rejoined the landing order and following an improvement in conditions landed normally."
The runway was shut for 16 hours in January for additional grooving work to be carried out on its temporary surface after 10 airlines cancelled or diverted flights over claims aircraft were skidding when landing in wet conditions.
This work was undertaken even though the Civil Aviation Authority had confirmed throughout that it had no issues relating to the operation of the runway in either wet or dry conditions.
The airport had been carrying resurfacing work, part of a £17m project which is due for completion at the end of March.
A total of 385 flights and 25,000 passengers were affected by the dispute.
Source: BBC
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