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Noise forces London-bound Delta passengers to return to Atlanta – twice

ATLANTA -- Delta Air Lines passengers trying to fly from Atlanta to London were forced to turn back to their starting point -- twice -- after the pilot on both flights heard a noise.

A Delta flight departed from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport at 7:55 p.m. Tuesday. The pilot heard a noise, and the aircraft was forced to return due to engine problems, CBS Atlanta affiliate WGCL-TV reports.  

Passengers then boarded a second flight that left at 11:59 p.m. on Tuesday night. The pilot heard a noise again, and the aircraft returned to the gate Wednesday at about 1:45 a.m. 

Alex Brown, a passenger, reportedly said he heard a loud banging on that flight.

"It was like someone dropping a lead ball on the floor," he told Channel 2 Action News, according to AJC.com. "And (a Delta official) came back on and said we're going to turn around. Everything is OK with the airplane but ... we're going to turn around" as a precaution.

It is unclear if the same pilot was flying the first and second planes.

A third flight is scheduled to depart Wednesday evening.  

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