Cathay Pacific Airbus engine catches fire, emergency landing

By danwarne, May 16 2011
Cathay Pacific Airbus engine catches fire, emergency landing

A Cathay Pacific Airbus A330 has made an emergency landing just 40 minutes into its flight after one of its engines caught fire.

Flight CX715 took off from Singapore at 1.12am, bound for Jakarta, but was forced to make an emergency return to Changi Airport after one of its Rolls-Royce engines caught fire.

Six firefighting crews had to approach the plane on the runway and put the fire out upon landing, with the plane's fire suppression systems unable to quell it.

Passengers on the jet reportedly thought the plane was going to go down and started praying together and pulling lifejackets from beneath the seats.

Reuters reported that two loud bangs were heard by passengers, the plane began shaking violently, and the internal lights went out. Flight attendants started hurriedly taking meals back that they'd just handed out to passengers.

However, despite passengers' worries, the plane landed safely at Changi, without further incident.

Another Cathay Pacific Airbus A330 also had serious engine problems en route to Hong Kong from Indonesia last month. Six of eight tyres deflated upon touchdown, after brakes overheated due to the plane being overspeed at landing.

Twenty minutes prior, the pilots of the plane noticed large fluctuations in engine thrust, with one engine underperforming, and the other engine bursting overspeed.

It's not yet known whether the latest incident was on the same aircraft.


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