PETALING JAYA (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - A London-bound Malaysia Airlines (MAS) flight had to turn back to Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) due to technical issues.

MAS external and media relations officer Adlina Azharuddin told The Star that flight MH2 bound for Heathrow Airport, which left at 11.30pm on Thursday (Feb 25), made a turnback and arrived at KLIA at 1.56am on Friday (Feb 26).

"The aircraft faced difficulties shortly after take-off. In the interest of passenger safety, the captain decided to return to KLIA.

"The flight was rescheduled and took off today using another aircraft. Passenger safety was not compromised during the incident," she said.

She added that the airline is currently investigating the cause of the fault.

Earlier, a passenger on MH2 told The Star that the captain had identified that something was amiss shortly after the flight departed KLIA.

"From the back of the plane we smelled something rubbery tinged with fuel. We also heard that those on the upper deck in business class and first class were hit by the strong smell of hydraulic fuel.

"The captain then spoke on the PA and told passengers that he too could smell it in the cockpit and later found that it indicated failure in Engine One," said the passenger.

She added that after deciding to turn back, the captain proceeded to dump fuel, which took about an hour before the plane safely landed back at KLIA.