Australian Jet Plunge Injures 40

[LaoPo]

Australian jet plunge injures 40

A passenger plane has made an emergency landing in Western Australia after some 40 people were hurt following a "sudden change in altitude", officials say.

The Qantas Airbus A330-300 flying from Singapore to Perth with 313 people on board landed at Learmonth Airport near Exmouth after making a mayday call.

Qantas said there was no sign yet as to what caused the altitude change, but officials suspect it was turbulence.

Emergency services, including medical personnel, met the plane on landing.

Three cabin crew and more than 30 passengers sustained injuries, 15 of them serious, including fractures and lacerations, officials said.

Several people were taken to the hospital in Exmouth.

The Royal Flying Doctor Service also sent two aircraft to Exmouth to help transport the injured to the state capital Perth, about 1,100km (700 miles) south of the town, if necessary.

'In-flight upset'

The Australian Air Transport Safety Bureau said the plane had been cruising in level flight when it experienced a "sudden in-flight upset" which resulted in injuries to a number of cabin crew and passengers, primarily in the rear of the aircraft.

The pilot declared a mayday and diverted the plane to make an emergency landing at the remote Learmonth airport on the north-western Australian coast, "where it landed without further incident", the statement added.

Qantas said there were no details available at this stage as to what caused the altitude change, but one local police officer said it was severe turbulence.

"We have had some information that it possibly was turbulence, but we haven't had that confirmed at this stage," Sgt Clifford told ABC.

However, Western Australia Police Commissioner Karl O'Callaghan later told the Sydney Morning Herald that he understood the incident had been caused by "some sort of systems failure".

He said his force's State Crisis Centre in Perth had been activated. Seven ATSB investigators are also preparing to travel to Learmonth in order to investigate the incident.

Qantas is sending two smaller planes to the airport to bring stranded passengers to Perth.

Safety review

The Australian flag-carrier prides itself on having a good safety record, but a spate of recent incidents has dented its image, correspondents say.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7656171.stm with video

LaoPo

[imaneggspurt]

Sounds awful, ALWAYS wear your belt when seated,you will be a lot safer, unless someone that wasnt wearing one lands on you

[LaoPo]

Up to 40 injured in Qantas mid-air jet 'upset'

5 hours ago

PERTH, Australia (AFP) — Up to 40 passengers and crew were injured, some seriously, in a mid-air incident that forced a Qantas jetliner to make an emergency landing, the Australian carrier and police said on Tuesday.

The incident was the latest in a series that have tarnished the safety record of Qantas, which has long boasted a reputation of being one of the world's safest airlines.

The Airbus A330-300 made an emergency touchdown at an airfield near the Western Australian town of Exmouth after issuing a mayday call when the plane suddenly changed altitude during a flight from Singapore to Perth, Qantas said.

"A number of passengers and crew sustained injuries, including fractures and lacerations, on board QF72 this afternoon en route from Singapore to Perth following a sudden change in altitude," the airline said.

"Emergency services, including medical attendants, met the aircraft on landing," a statement from the 90-year-old Australian airline said.

Qantas could not immediately confirm the number of injured or whether it was turbulence or another factor that had caused the aircraft, which was carrying 303 passengers and 10 crew, to drop or rise suddenly during flight.

A fleet of emergency vehicles was on standby at the Learmonth air base, about 1,100 kilometres (680 miles) northeast of the state capital Perth, when the plane landed, said Sergeant Greg Lambert of the West Australian Police.

"It is understood up to 40 people were injured during a mid-air incident," he said.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) said early reports indicated that around 30 passengers and crew had been hurt, 15 of them sustaining serious injuries, including broken bones and cuts.

"While cruising in level flight, the aircraft experienced a sudden in-flight upset, resulting in injuries to a number of cabin crew and passengers, primarily in the rear of the aircraft," the bureau said in a statement.

"The crew declared a mayday and diverted the aircraft to Learmonth ... where it landed without further incident," it said, adding that it was sending seven investigators to Learmonth to establish what happened to the jet.

An emergency services worker said paramedics had boarded the Qantas aircraft and were tending to the injured after it touched down at around 1:35 pm (0535 GMT), 35 minutes before its scheduled landing time in Perth.

Australia's famed Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) said it was poised to dispatch four of its flying ambulances to airlift six to eight of the fracture victims to Perth for treatment, but said none were in danger.

"I don't believe that there are any in a life-threatening condition," said RFDS public affairs director Lesleigh Green.

"But if people have had hits on the head or have been hit by flying objects, until you actually assess that, you don't know whether it could be a spinal or neurological issue."

Qantas is sending two aircraft to Learmonth from Perth to collect passengers and crew stranded in the remote northwest of Australia.

In July, an exploding oxygen bottle punched a huge hole in the side of a Qantas Boeing 747-400, forcing an emergency landing in the Philippines. No passengers were injured in the mid-air drama.

The plane, which was carrying 365 people, was cruising at 29,000 feet (8,800 metres) en route from Hong Kong to Melbourne when the terrifying drama struck.

Australian air safety investigators in August announced a safety review of Qantas after two other incidents occurred involving its aircraft within two weeks.

On July 28, a Qantas Boeing 737-800 returned to Adelaide after a landing gear door failed to retract. In early August a Boeing 767 bound for Manila turned back to Sydney after developing a hydraulic fluid leak.

But the aviation watchdog, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA), said that despite the review there was no evidence to suggest any links between three mid-air emergencies on Qantas flights.

-AFP

LaoPo

[tw25rw]

Should in no way tarnish their image. It's why they always recommend you keep your belt done up.

[webtv]

I had a similar thing happen on a Garuda flight over Bali from London about 15 years ago.. The plane seemed to plummet a few thousand feet and many people hit the roof and a few were injured.. The pilot did not even say anything over the intercom to anyone and just landed the plane as nothing happened. Ha.. last time I flew with them..

I always wear my seatbelt and did on that day to.. si kem cut na krap.

[Khutan]

Well, at least the 3000+ meters there would have been plenty to land on, and maybe some more.

Can't imagine what immigration etc did with the unexpected arrivals somewhere like that.

[Old Croc]

There's another thread about this under the misnomer of Quantas.

Perhaps they can be merged?

[tw25rw]

Is it just me that wants to torture anyone that spells it Quantas?

[Old Croc]

Well, at least the 3000+ meters there would have been plenty to land on, and maybe some more.

Can't imagine what immigration etc did with the unexpected arrivals somewhere like that.

It's one of the longest runways in Oz. I remember a lot of years ago when Australia and the US were having large scale war exercises in the Pilbara. Learmonth was the only airport in the region the B59's could use.

Learmonth is an alternate airport for Perth if it is fogged out. It's not the first time a plane load of passengers have landed there. They are usually processed when they eventually get to Perth.

[Khutan]

Old Croc are you talking about the B-52, as the B-59 was stopped in 1959. I actually thought the Air base raised in popularity when the F-111 could reach Jakarta from there.

Anyway, my main point was it must have been a bit of a shock for the locals, and I wonder if they got the local CWA out to sell "Devonshire Teas" and other pleasantries.

[Old Croc]

Old Croc are you talking about the B-52, as the B-59 was stopped in 1959. I actually thought the Air base raised in popularity when the F-111 could reach Jakarta from there.

Anyway, my main point was it must have been a bit of a shock for the locals, and I wonder if they got the local CWA out to sell "Devonshire Teas" and other pleasantries.

Oops, yes. Thanks for the correction, I thought it didn't sound right at the time.

I think the F111 s were mainly operating out of Curtin, near Derby.

[toptuan]

Should in no way tarnish their image. It's why they always recommend you keep your belt done up.

Just out of curiosity, does anyone know if it's in the flight manual for the pilots to always keep their seat belts fastened?

I have this unsettling image of the pilot and co-pilot being dashed up against the ceiling (necks broken, of course) during turbulence, and then the flight attendants needing to find Kurt Russel, who's only had a couple lessons in a Piper Cub, to land the plane as they "talk him down." Makes a good action movie, but I'd just as soon forgo the real-life experience.

[HorseDoctor]

Sounds awful, ALWAYS wear your belt when seated,you will be a lot safer, unless someone that wasnt wearing one lands on you

Yes , this should be enforced at all times while in your seat, very dangerous to have a 200 lb man land on you ..

I also get annoyed when people undo their belt on landing whilst still hurtling down the runway at 150 miles an hour, even moving at all is still dangerous for those next to you . What's the hurry?

I was on an Egypt Air flight where immediately after landing and still rolling at a great speed people got out of their seats and started removing luggage from the overhead bins. The attendents did nothing