Passengers on a Qantas flight described the terrifying moment when their plane’s engine appeared to emit fire mid-air, forcing crew to make an unexpected landing.
Flight QF122 departed Queenstown in New Zealand on Saturday at 4.05pm for a routine flight to Sydney that usually lasts three hours.
However, data from FlightRadar shows that Qantas’ Boeing 737 diverted from its usual flight path just after take-off, heading towards the city of Christchurch on New Zealand’s South Island.
The airline said the plane experienced a “suspected engine issue” which forced the flight to make the unexpected landing.
On board, passengers said the cabin erupted into widespread panic as flames could reportedly be seen coming out of the engine, while turbulence which shook the plane added to the alarm.
Kriti Sethi, who was on her way home after a holiday, told Australia’s public broadcaster ABC that she “could see fire” coming from the left-hand engine.
“People were screaming; people were like, ‘Oh my God.’ It was quite scary,” she said.
Ms Sethi added that passengers were kept informed by the crew throughout the ordeal, with the captain explaining in one announcement that the plane had likely experienced a chemical failure with the engines.
The captain then told the flight that they would have to make an unexpected landing in Christchurch.
It is understood that the diversion was not classed as an emergency and the plane was still operating both engines upon landing.
The plane landed in Christchurch around an hour after take-off at 5pm local time and was met by fire engines and emergency services on the runway.
Ms Sethi described the captain and the cabin crew as “amazing” after handling the incident and landing the plane safely.
Passengers were put up in hotels in Christchurch before being booked onto other flights to Sydney the following day.
A Qantas spokesperson told The Independent: “One of our flights to Sydney experienced a suspected engine issue after take-off from Queenstown on Saturday 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.”
Engineers are currently assessing the plane in Christchurch, but a cause is yet to be determined.
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