Arkia airplane
Arkia airplaneFlash 90

An Arkia airplane carrying 72 passengers landed safely at the Ben Gurion Airport on Sunday night, shortly after the airport declared a state of emergency around midnight.

The emergency was declared after the crew of the plane, that was making its way from Larnaca, Cyprus, to Tel Aviv, reported a technical failure in the plane’s engine.

Rescue crews were deployed to the airport, but the plane landed safely and there were no injuries.

Technicians are examining the aircraft to determine the cause of the technical malfunction.

Last week, an El Al flight en route from New York to Israel was forced make an emergency landing in Athens, after smoke was spotted in the plane.

The plane landed without further incident.  No damage or casualties were reported.  El Al technicians looked into the source of the problem.

In July, a level two emergency was declared at Ben Gurion Airport as a Greek plane made an emergency landing at the airport. Dozens of rescue workers, vehicles, fire trucks, and ambulances gathered on the tarmac near the where the plane successfully landed.

The plane had 170 passengers aboard and belonged to HRM, a carrier that does not fly to Israel. The plane was apparently on its way to Amman when it sustained major damage to its hydraulic system. The pilot radioed Ben Gurion Airport while still outside Israel's territorial waters, and IDF planes were scrambled to accompany it into Israeli airspace.