Monday, May 16, 2011

AVIATION/ ENGINE FIRE FORCES CATHAY A330 TO RETURN TO SINGAPORE

No one onboard a CATHAY PACIFIC Airbus A330 was injured, when the aircraft had to make an emergency return to Singapore early this morning, due to an engine fire. Flight 715 was on International Service from Singapore to Jakarta, Indonesia, with 136 passengers and crew members onboard, when the incident took place. About 20 minutes after departure, passengers reported hearing 2 loud bangs. Passengers said the cabin began to shake "violently" and the lights went out. The flight crew declared an emergency, reporting trouble with the right hand engine, Roll Royce Trent 772, and that they had shut it down, following a stall warning. As the aircraft turned around to return to Singapore, the cabin crew, which had just begun serving meals, quickly prepared the passengers for the return. Media reports say that many passengers were panicked, with several crying and others saying prayers. The A330 landed back in Singapore 1:12am and stopped on the taxiway, where it was met by Emergency Services, who extinguished a fire in the No.2 engine. The visiblly shaken passengers were quickly offloaded via portable stairs. Aviation officials have launched an investigation, as has Cathay and Rolls Royce.

No comments:

Post a Comment