The flight turned around somewhere over Bristol, descended to 17,000 feet, and returned to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, where it landed safely.

You might wonder why the aircraft returned all the way to Amsterdam when it could have diverted to a number of closer airports in England. The answer is three-fold. First, there were logistical concerns. KLM’s base is at AMS and it is from there KLM can best repair aircraft, obtain replacement aircraft, and offer other flight options to passengers. Second, and even more importantly, the lack of emergency landing demonstrates how safe the flight crew felt operating wtih only one engine. Yes, a plane can operate (and indeed, operate a great distance) on only one engine. Continuing to São Paulo would have been foolish, but the risk of losing the second engine was deemed low enough that the captain chose to go back. Finally, the aircraft had to dump fuel before landing, which took time.