Career off with a bang

A JETSTAR flight carrying 134 passengers was forced to turn back to Melbourne after the plane’s tail hit the runway during a trainee pilot’s first time at the controls.

The Jetstar Airbus A320-232 made it back to ground safely on May 11, 2016 after the first officer took over from the trainee, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau found in a report released yesterday.

Jetstar confirmed the pilot was in training. “The pilot involved was taken off flying duties while he underwent additional simulator training and assessments,’’ a Jetstar spokesman said, adding he had since returned to flying.