LONDON, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- A Boeing 747 of the British airline Virgin Atlantic made an emergency landing at London's Gatwick airport Saturday due to technical problems, The Times reported.

    The plane, with 320 passengers on board, had to turn back soon after taking off for Barbados when the pilot reported problems, the newspaper said on its website.

    It landed at 11:08 a.m. (1108 GMT) and was directed to a remote part of the airport where passengers were evacuated. No one was hurt during the incident.

    An investigation into the problem was underway, a Virgin spokesman said, adding that his company was doing what it could to transfer passengers to Barbados.

    "Whatever fault there was on the aircraft, the pilot would have had a good reason for turning back," he was quoted as saying. "We are now investigating why."

    The incident came three days after the Madrid air disaster, in which 154 people were killed and 19 others were injured.

    On Wednesday, an MD-82 jet shot off the runway at terminal four at the International Airport of Barajas and caught fire at takeoff. The airplane was totally destroyed and most of the dead were burned beyond recognition.