An Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner was forced to dump fuel over Lake Michigan and return to Chicago O'Hare International Airport after suffering a dual autopilot failure shortly after departure. The incident, captured on air traffic control audio, saw the pilot request permission to jettison fuel roughly 90 minutes into what should have been a 10-hour flight to Addis Ababa, highlighting the safety protocols airlines must follow when an aircraft needs to land while still carrying excess weight.

The flight departed at 10.55am CDT and the pilot requested the fuel dump at around 12.20pm, with air traffic control approving it a minute later while the aircraft was above 20,000 feet, well clear of the 5,000-10,000ft range typically required for fuel to vaporise safely. The plane landed safely back at O'Hare at 12.30pm CDT, and the journey to Ethiopia was rescheduled for the following Thursday. The Boeing 787-8 can carry up to 223,378lbs of fuel, though it is unclear how much was released; the Daily Mail has contacted the NTSB, Ethiopian Airlines, the FAA, Chicago's aviation department and the EPA for comment.