ARFF Daily News

Friday the 8th of November, 2024

Fire erupts near Sydney Airport runway as Qantas flight forced to make emergency landing

‘You could see they were head on the seat, shaking ...’

Rhiannon Lewin and Bryce Luff

Sydney Airport was on full alert when an engine failure on a departing Qantas flight forced an emergency landing and sparked a grass fire on the edge of the runway.

Passengers on the Brisbane-bound 737 said they heard a “bang” and were jolted after take-off on Friday afternoon.

Journalist Mark Willacy was a passenger on flight QF520 and said it was “the plane’s urgent struggle to get altitude” that “made my blood run cold”.

“I looked at my fellow passengers. They were dead quiet, but their faces betrayed serious concern,” he recounted for the ABC.

“The guy next to me grabbed his phone and started texting. A partner? A parent? I was too paralysed to message anyone.”

Another passenger said it was clear travellers were concerned.

“I probably wasn’t too scared but there were some people really anxious - you could see they were head on the seat, shaking and stuff,” one told 7NEWS.

The pilots circled for a short period before landing safely at Sydney Airport about 1.10pm.

“Our pilots are highly trained to handle situations like this and the aircraft landed safely after the appropriate procedures were conducted,” Qantas chief pilot Captain Richard Tobiano said.

“We understand this would have been a distressing experience for customers and we will be contacting all customers this afternoon to provide support.

“We will also be conducting an investigation into what caused the engine issue.”

The situation paralysed the airport for more than 45 minutes and stranded passengers.

Airservices Australia said the engine failure on departure was to blame for the fire adjacent to the runway 34R.

The fire was brought under control by teams from the Aviation Rescue Fire Fighting Service.

“Airservices’ National Operations Management Centre enacted a 47-minute ground stop at Sydney Airport to ensure the plane could land as quickly as possible,” a spokesperson said.

“ARFF crews met QFA520 when it landed safely on Runway 34L, with nil passenger injuries.

“Runway 34L was returned to service after a safety inspection and clean-up was complete.

“Runway 34R is expected to reopen later today.”

The spokesperson said the runway closure and backlog of flights would lead to delays for people flying into and out of Sydney.

Superintendent Adam Dewberry from Fire and Rescue NSW described the fire as “pretty large” and said crews will remain on scene to achieve “complete extinguishment”.

A Sydney Airport spokesperson said the priority was to “conduct a full inspection of its parallel runway and to return it to service as quickly as possible”.

“Sydney Airport’s main runway is operational, however, passengers should also expect some delays and we thank everyone for their patience,” they said.

“Passengers who are travelling today are also encouraged to check with their airline regarding the status of their flight, or via the online flight information boards on Sydney Airport’s website.”

Images posted to social media from the ground showed huge plumes of smoke blowing over the runways.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has confirmed it is investigating and will proceed “methodically” to establish exactly what happened and whether any underlying safety issues are at play.

“A team of transport safety investigators, with experience in aircraft maintenance, aircraft operations, material failure analysis and data recovery, has commenced the evidence collection phase of this investigation,” ATSB chief commissioner Angus Mitchell said.

“At the ATSB’s request the operator has quarantined the aircraft’s cockpit voice and flight data recorders. Once downloaded, information from those recorders will be analysed at the ATSB’s technical facilities in Canberra.”

Flight crew are also expected to be interviewed, while investigators will review procedures and weather.

‘Remarkable skill’

The Australian and International Pilots Association said engine failures are “extremely rare” but praised the crew for its handling of the emergency return.

“Engine failures are extremely rare but Qantas pilots are exceptionally well trained to handle them with the utmost professionalism,” AIPA Safety and Technical Director, Captain Steve Cornell said.

“In this instance the crew displayed remarkable skill, expertise, and composure in returning safely to Sydney and protecting everyone on board.

“The safety of passengers, crew, and cargo is always our highest priority.”

It comes as Sydney airport, among other international airports across the country, faced a national tech outage on Friday morning.

https://7news.com.au/news/emergency-unfolding-at-sydney-airport-as-huge-blaze-is-ignited-near-runway-c-16681574

NTSB Prelim: Badlands Vaquero

About 3,000 Ft Above Ground Level, Flames Appeared From The Right Side Of The Engine Cowling

Location: West Wendover, NV Accident Number: WPR25LA025
Date & Time: October 27, 2024, 09:15 Local Registration: N510DH
Aircraft: Badlands Vaquero Injuries: 1 Minor
Flight Conducted Under: Part 91: General aviation - Personal

On October 27, 2024, about 0915 Pacific daylight time, an experimental amateur-built Badlands Vaquero airplane, N510DH, was destroyed when it was involved in an accident near West Wendover, Nevada. The pilot sustained minor injuries. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.

The pilot reported that during cruise flight, about 3,000 ft above ground level, flames appeared from the right side of the engine cowling. The pilot shut the fuel and the engine off, initiated an emergency descent, and initiated a forced landing on an interstate service road. After he landed, the pilot evacuated the airplane, and the fire continued, which consumed a large portion of the airplane.

The wreckage was recovered and will be examined at a later date.

FMI: www.ntsb.gov

Today in History

61 Years ago today: On 8 November 1963 Aero OY flight 217, a Douglas DC-3, crashed while on approach to Mariehamn Airport, Finland, killing 22 occupants; 3 survived the accident.

Date: Friday 8 November 1963

Time: 16:59

Type: Douglas C-47A-35-DL (DC-3)

Owner/operator: Aero OY

Registration: OH-LCA

MSN: 9799

Year of manufacture: 1943

Total airframe hrs: 30672 hours

Engine model: P&W R-1830-92

Fatalities: Fatalities: 22 / Occupants: 25

Other fatalities: 0

Aircraft damage: Destroyed, written off

Category: Accident

Location: 1,5 km N of Mariehamn Airport (MHQ) -   Finland

Phase: Approach

Nature: Passenger - Scheduled

Departure airport: Turku Airport (TKU/EFTU)

Destination airport: Mariehamn Airport (MHQ/EFMA)

Investigating agency: CoI Finland

Confidence Rating:  Accident investigation report completed and information captured

Narrative:

Aero OY flight 217, a Douglas DC-3, crashed while on approach to Mariehamn Airport, Finland, killing 22 occupants; 3 survived the accident.

Flight 217 operated on a Helsinki-Turku-Mariehamn flight and left Turku (TKU) at 16:20 GMT. The last leg of the flight was carried out at an altitude of 2000 feet. At 16:57 the crew reported over the MAR NDB on the inbound track to runway 20. During the approach the aircraft struck trees in a nearly horizontal attitude 1470 m before the threshold of the runway. The plane flipped over and caught fire.

PROBABLE CAUSE: "The Board considered that the ultimate cause of the accident was the pilot's misconception of his altitude. It was impossible to determine whether this was due to a wrong indication of the altimeter or human error. The defect, found in the pilot-in-command's altimeter, was regarded however as sufficient to have brought a wrong indication of the altitude which the pilot could not foresee. The cause of the accident was therefore established as follows: As a result of a wrong indication of the aircraft's pilot's altimeter during an instrument approach carried out in weather conditions worse than the weather approved for runway 20 at Mariehamn, the aircraft came below the safe flying altitude and hit trees on the approach line."