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Emirates plane hole 1 in a million, says aviation expert.
An Emirates Airbus A380 reportedly flew for 14 hours with a large hole in its side from the airline’s hub in Dubai to Australia’s Brisbane.
The incident occurred on flight EK450 on July 1, with the Aviation Herald reporting that pilots had contacted Air Traffic Control at Brisbane Airport shortly before landing to report that they suspected they had blown a tyre on take-off, and requesting to be met by emergency services on landing.
The plane landed safely and no passengers were reported injured or even evacuated.
One passenger from the flight, identified as Patrick, told Australia’s Courier Mail that he had heard a concerning noise around 45 minutes into the flight.
“There was a loud bang and I felt it through the floor as well,” he said.
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“The cabin crew remained calm, stopped the food service and got on the phone and checked the wings, engines.”
The incident is highly unusual, explained Dr Johannes Boroh, a former commercial pilot and senior lecturer in aviation studies at London’s Kingston University.
“It’s a one in a million case probably. It’s something that we don’t see every day.”
In a statement, Emirates said: “Our flight EK430 flying from Dubai to Brisbane on 1 July experienced a technical fault. 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.
“The fairing has been completely replaced, checked and cleared by engineers, Airbus and all relevant authorities. The safety of our passengers and crew has always been our top priority.”
