A Qantas plane has landed safely in Sydney, after its pilot issued a mayday call after experiencing an issue with one of its engines an hour from its destination.
Flight QF144, a Boeing 737 twin-engined jet from Auckland, touched down just before 3:30pm EDT.
Emergency services were on stand-by as a precaution, after rushing to the site about about an hour earlier.
Qantas said in a statement that the flight “experienced an issue with one of its engines about an hour from its destination”.
The airline said the plane was met by emergency services in line with standard procedure.
“While a mayday was initially issued, this has now been downgraded to a Pan (possible assistance needed),” Qantas said.
“We will share more information about this incident once the aircraft is on the ground and has been assessed by our engineers.”
The flight left Auckland just after 2pm local time.
Just before Christmas, a Sydney to London via Singapore Qantas flight was forced to make an emergency landing in Azerbaijan after pilots noticed a fault indicator in the cockpit.
Qantas said a suspected faulty fire sensor in the cargo hold was to blame.
The airline sent another Airbus A380 from Sydney to the capital Baku to pick up passengers stranded after the diversion.
Earlier this month a Jetstar flight was forced to land in Central Japan after it reportedly received a bomb threat.
The aircraft, owned by Qantas, was reportedly travelling from Narita Airport near Tokyo to Fukuoka, when it was forced to divert to Aichi prefecture, public broadcaster NHK reported at the time.
This year Qantas regained the top spot as the world’s safest airline after dropping down to seventh place in 2022, according to AirlineRatings.com.
Last year Qantas toppled down the scale due to a “slight increase in incidents coupled with the fleet age,” according to the website.
The website that collates safety, product and COVID ratings online, found the Australian carrier only just beat last year’s winner, Air New Zealand.
Qantas previously held the title from 2014 to 2017, and between 2019 to 2021.
Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Catherine King said it was a relief to know the aircraft had landed without harm.
“Well done to the highly experienced crew for getting the plane safely home,” Ms King tweeted.
“Australia’s aviation industry is among the safest in the world because of the dedicated staff working on planes and behind the scenes.”
