Mayday scare but plane is safe

NEW pictures of the broken engine that led to a Qantas plane issuing a mayday call mid-flight on Wednesday reveal the extent of the damage, while passengers praised the pilot for the safe landing.

Firefighters and paramedics were on standby at Sydney Airport after the emergency alert was issued by flight QF144 about 2.10pm. The alert was later downgraded to a PAN, which means possible assistance needed.

Aerial footage showed the plane as it descended into the airport before landing on the tarmac, in Mascot, in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.

Passengers were smiling as they came through departures. One woman, who was visiting from Britain via New Zealand, told NCA NewsWire the pilot communicated with passengers about an “engine problem”, but not that they had issued a mayday call.

Pictures have revealed the damage to the plane from the engine failure. The flight was scheduled to land at 3.10pm but it landed safely at 3.26pm, according to FlightRadar24.

Its departure from Auckland airport was delayed by 55 minutes. Passenger Nigel Morris said: “We didn’t know anything at the time, but we’re here safe.

“When they said we could turn on our phones, I turned on my phone and my wife had called about 18 times. It’s a debate about whether it’s better to know or not to know.”

Other travellers said they heard a “bang” and a “few gasps” upon landing.

One couple told NewsWire: “We didn’t realise the whole engine had gone; we just heard a bang and that was it. There were a few gasps when they told us on the actual runway, but we had already landed.”

Passenger Fiona Dunn said she was made aware of the incident before landing and said she was “pretty panicked”.

“I was just trying to work out the logistics of whether it could fly on one engine alone,” she said.

Ms Dunn praised the actions of the pilot and crew in keeping passengers safe.

“The aircon was gone so it was pretty hot in the plane, but besides that, the captain stayed cool, calm and collected,” she said. Passenger Leslie Spring said: “It was a little bit bumpy, but it was just like turbulence – if they hadn’t have told us, we wouldn’t have known.”

The jet, a Boeing 737-838, has twin engines but can fly on just one.

A Qantas spokesman said: “Qantas Flight 144, a 737 flying from Auckland to Sydney, experienced an issue with one of its engines about an hour from its destination.”