Airliners-India

karatecatman

From Times UKOctober 13, 2009

Qantas passengers stranded for 26 hours on London flight

Claire Sweeney

Passengers bound for London on a Qantas flight were left stranded in Australia for more than 26 hours following technical problems with two separate A380 planes.

After waiting five hours at Sydney airport for a hydraulics issue to be fixed, more than 100 passengers on flight QF31 boarded a replacement A380.

However, the second plane also experienced technical difficulties and had to return to the terminal shortly before take-off.

"In the early stages of its take-off roll just before 11pm, the flight crew received an engine control message which required a return to the terminal and a night stop," a Qantas spokesperson said.

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The passengers were compensated with overnight accommodation and meals and were booked onto other flights.

Qantas has been battling to restore its reputation following a number in-flight incidents and other safety and reliability problems over the last 18 months.

Qantas workers have complained that the outsourcing of maintenance to cheaper offshore locations is compromising passenger safety with up to 20 per cent of heavy aircraft maintenance being sent to Asia.

In January 2008 a Qantas 747 lost power on its descent into Bangkok, after water leaking through a drip shield in the galley shut down three of the four power generation units.

The following month a plane's landing gear failed on a Qantas flight from Gladstone to Rockhampton in Queensland and in July The Australian newspaper reported that staples were used to hold wiring in place on a Qantas 747-400.

One of the most terrifying incidents occurred in October 2008 when a Qantas A330 plunged 650 feet in a few seconds after a computer malfunction that was possibly triggered by electrical interference. More than 50 people were injured in the incident which happened suddenly at 37,000 feet over Western Australia.

From 2010 Qantas will bring back the maintenance of its A330 fleet to its Brisbane hanger in Queensland from its current Phillippine location.
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Nimish · Posted: Tue Oct 13, 2009 3:20 pm Post subject:

I don't know if this is egg on the face for Airbus/380 or for QF! But rather rare to have 2 380's go Kaput when you have a fleet of 3-4!
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