Hole in fuselage causes Qantas flight to make emergency landing

Friday, July 25, 2008

Qantas Boeing 747-400
Image: Adrian Pingstone.

A Boeing 747-438, Qantas airways flight number QF30 from London, England to Melbourne, Australia, had to make an emergency landing at Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila after a door panel popped open, creating a massive hole in the plane's fuselage.

After a brief stopover in Hong Kong, passengers reported hearing a large bang and saw what appeared to be papers flying around outside their windows. Oxygen masks were deployed and an emergency descent from nearly 30,000 feet to 10,000 feet was initiated by the pilots, who managed to successfully divert the aircraft to Manila for an emergency landing.

There are currently no reported injuries to any of the over 300 passengers aboard the flight.


Sources