SANTA Cruz DE TENERIFE, Spain — Travel mishaps happen to everyone, including the Pope. When Pope Leo XIV found himself stranded Friday due to aircraft troubles, Spain’s King Felipe VI came to the rescue with his personal plane.
The pontiff’s chartered Iberia flight back to Rome encountered engine problems after his week-long Spanish visit, leaving Leo XIV grounded at the airport in Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the Canary Islands. King Felipe personally accompanied the Pope across the airport tarmac to board the royal Falcon jet, departing more than three hours behind schedule.
The mechanical failure capped off what had otherwise been a successful papal journey through Madrid, Barcelona and the Canary Islands, where Leo XIV delivered his immigration advocacy message and dedicated the newly completed Sagrada Familia basilica tower.
According to the Iberia captain, the aircraft’s engine wouldn’t turn over after the Pope had already settled aboard. When repair attempts proved unsuccessful, everyone had to exit the plane. The airline dispatched a replacement aircraft from Madrid to transport Vatican staff and media personnel who couldn’t fit on the king’s smaller jet. The Spanish island chain sits closer to the African continent than mainland Spain.
This marked the first occasion in many years that papal air travel encountered such severe difficulties requiring a complete aircraft change.
Seasoned Vatican correspondents, including some aboard the disabled Iberia jet, remembered similar incidents during St. John Paul II’s papacy. A 1986 homebound flight from India was diverted to Naples due to Roman snowstorms, forcing passengers and the Pope to complete their journey by special rail service.
Two years later in 1988, harsh weather conditions forced John Paul’s aircraft bound for Lesotho to make an emergency landing in South Africa — a nation he had deliberately avoided on that African tour due to apartheid policies. He subsequently traveled overland into the kingdom.
Standard papal travel protocol involves Italy’s national airline ITA Airways handling outbound transportation while the destination country’s carrier provides return service, though ITA sometimes manages both legs for extended journeys or destinations lacking adequate service capabilities.
These flights operate as chartered services, with the Pope, Vatican officials and security personnel occupying premium seating while approximately 70 journalists travel in economy class.
Earlier during the Spanish visit, Iberia had showcased footage of Leo XIV in the cockpit, beaming as the aircraft transported him between Madrid and Barcelona, then onward to the Canary Islands. Spanish military jets provided ceremonial aerial escorts on both segments — a traditional honor for distinguished visitors — with video capturing the Pope waving to accompanying pilots.
