<img class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual" src="https://display.blogto.com/articles/20250417-air-canada-emergency-landing.jpg?w=1200&amp;cmd=resize_then_crop&amp;height=630&amp;quality=70" width="100%" /><p>Nearly 200 people&nbsp;flying from sunny Las Vegas to a still-frigid Toronto were jolted back to reality with a little&nbsp;more than your average post-trip blues this week when their plane had to make an emergency landing before even making it back into Canada.</p><p>Air Canada Rouge Flight 1702 departed as usual from the U.S. party city shortly after 11 a.m. <b>PDT&nbsp;</b>on Wednesday, but did not make its scheduled 6:30 p.m. EDT arrival at Toronto Pearson International Airport due to&nbsp;a worrying smell of smoke in the cockpit.</p><p>Out of an abundance of caution, pilots diverted&nbsp;to Iowa &mdash; perhaps the biggest contrast possible after the hustle and bustle of Vegas &mdash; landing safely at&nbsp;Des Moines International Airport at 4:10 p.m. local time.</p><p>After the&nbsp;<b>A321</b>&nbsp;aircraft was inspected&nbsp;on the ground (as is standard procedure), it was allowed to proceed to a&nbsp;gate, where passengers deplaned, only to face delays of more than eight hours until they could board a substitute flight.</p><p>The route is a very regular one for the carrier, operating as 1702 at the same time each and every day.</p><p>Air Canada said in <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/article/air-canada-flight-forced-to-make-emergency-landing-in-iowa/">a statement to media</a> that no injuries were reported as a result of the incident, though we can only assume there were some very frustrated travellers among the 176 who were&nbsp;on board, given that AC1702 didn't end up landing in&nbsp;Toronto until&nbsp;2:33 a.m. Thursday morning.</p>