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Passengers were forced to disembark a Qantas flight over the weekend after travellers spotted flames shooting out from under the plane’s wing.
Footage circulating online appeared to show a fire from the engine on board QF1737 that was due to fly from Western Australia’s Karratha Airport to Perth on Sunday evening.
The Airbus A320-232 was meant to depart at 7:15 p.m. but was quickly returned to the bay shortly before takeoff.
A Qantas spokesperson confirmed to news.com.au that there was an “engine issue”.
“One of our flights to Perth experienced an engine issue shortly before takeoff from Karratha on Sunday evening,” they said.
“Our pilots followed standard procedures, and the aircraft returned safely to the bay.
“Safety is always our number one priority. We apologize to customers for the inconvenience and thank them for their understanding.”
Passengers on the flight were safely deboarded, and the flight was cancelled.
The airline arranged accommodation for stranded passengers, and customers were booked on the next available flight on Monday morning.
It is understood that engineers will inspect the plane before it returns to service.
Back in September this year, a Qantas flight from Queenstown to Sydney experienced a suspected engine issue after takeoff and diverted to Christchurch, where it landed safely.
A passenger on board said flames and sparks were visible from the engine within seconds of takeoff.
Rory McDonnell, who shared footage appearing to show fire coming from the engine, said the frightening sequence began within moments of departure, as repeated banging noises rang through the aircraft and passengers realised something was wrong.
“The experience was definitely a frightening one,” Mr. McDonnell told NewsWire.
“Within seconds of taking off, there were loud and constant bangs that felt like they were coming from underneath the aircraft.”
At the time, a Qantas spokesperson said: “One of our flights to Sydney experienced a suspected engine issue after takeoff from Queenstown this afternoon, and the aircraft diverted to Christchurch.”
“Our pilots are highly trained to manage situations like this, and the aircraft landed safely.
“We know this would have been a distressing experience for passengers and will be contacting all customers to provide support.”
