A WestJet flight from Toronto Pearson International Airport to Owen Roberts International Airport, Grand Cayman made an unscheduled stop in Orlando, Florida, on Saturday before continuing safely to the Cayman Islands.

Flight WS2032, operated by a Boeing 737 MAX 8 registered C-GPFT, departed Toronto Pearson International Airport before diverting to Orlando International Airport, where it remained on the ground for approximately 90 minutes. The aircraft later resumed its journey, landing in Grand Cayman at approximately 14:37 local time - one hour and fifty-two minutes behind its scheduled arrival time of 12:45

WestJet has not confirmed the reason for the diversion

Publicly available flight data confirms the aircraft did not transmit any of the internationally recognised emergency transponder codes - 7500 (unlawful interference), 7600 (radio communications failure) or 7700 (general emergency). There is also no evidence that the crew declared a Mayday or Pan-Pan emergency.

Flight tracking data indicates the aircraft had been cruising at approximately 30,000 feet before commencing a gradual descent, initially to around 26,000 feet, over the U.S. state of Virginia, before continuing towards Orlando.

Following its stop, the aircraft departed Orlando and completed the short onward sector to Grand Cayman without further incident.

While the absence of an emergency transponder code or radio call does not rule out a medical, technical, or operational issue, there is currently no public information confirming the reason for the unscheduled stop. Possible causes include a passenger requiring urgent medical attention, a precautionary technical inspection, an unruly passenger, or other operational considerations.

The Caymanian Journal has contacted WestJet for comment and will update this story if further information becomes available.