After passengers heard a loud bang, an Emirates plane flew for almost 14 hours with a big hole in its side.
On July 1, the Airbus A380 departed from the airline’s primary hub in Dubai and headed to Brisbane, Australia.
Not long after takeoff, when the plane was over the ocean, people on board said they heard a loud bang. The crew decided to keep flying, and 13.5 hours later, they landed in Brisbane.
According to the Aviation Herald, an aircraft crew feared they had blown a tyre during takeoff and contacted air traffic control to ask for emergency personnel to be on standby as they made their approach to the Queensland airport.
The jet touched down without incident, but after it was on the ground, rescue personnel were horrified to see a huge hole in the fairing on the left side of the aircraft.
Fairing is added to improve aerodynamics, make the shape smoother, and reduce drag.
A detached bolt was also found by inspectors in the nosegear, but it is not yet known if the two instances are connected.
Due to the damage, the plane was unable to leave Brisbane on its return voyage and remained there for around 17 hours.
Soon after takeoff, one passenger reported hearing a “loud bang.”
A passenger in Australia told The Courier Mail, “There was a loud bang and I felt it through the floor as well.”
“The cabin crew remained calm, stopped the food service and got on the phone and checked the wings, engines”
A representative for Emirates claimed that “a technical fault” occurred on the EK430 flight from Dubai to Brisbane.
“One of the aircraft’s 22 tyres ruptured during cruise, causing damage to a small portion of the aerodynamic fairing, which is an outer panel or the skin of the aircraft.
“At no point did it have any impact on the fuselage, frame or structure of the aircraft.”
“The aircraft landed safely in Brisbane and all passengers disembarked as scheduled.”
Engineers, Airbus, and all pertinent authorities have completely replaced, inspected, and cleared the fairing.
“The safety of our passengers and crew has always been our top priority.”
Image Credit: @JacdecNew
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