Two Qantas flights forced to turn back to Sydney due to mechanical faults
Long-haul Qantas flight QF7 has landed safely in Sydney, after it was forced to circle and dump fuel for hours after the pilot discovered an issue with the plane's flaps shortly after takeoff.
It was the second mid-air incident for the airline, with two Qantas planes carrying hundreds of passengers returning to Sydney International Airport this afternoon.
QF7 headed for Dallas Fort Worth and QF63 to Johannesburg were turned back after one suffered wing flap issues and the other a crack to the outer pane of a cockpit windscreen.
QF7, an Airbus A380, touched down safely just before 4.38pm AEST and was quickly followed by emergency vehicles.
"The flaps on the aircraft (which are attached to the wing) are unable to retract which means the aircraft can’t fly efficiently," Qantas said in a statement.
"As the Dallas flight is our longest on the network, the captain made the decision to return to Sydney."
The aircraft was forced to dump fuel over the Tasman Sea east of Wollongong.
It will now be inspected by engineers.
QF63, which returned after a crack to the cockpit window, landed shortly before 3:30pm today.
The airline said the plane was safe to continue to Johannesburg but the captain made the decision to return the plane so the windscreen could be replaced at Qantas' engineering base in Sydney.
"An aircraft windscreen is made up of three layers of glass, the outer pane had cracked but did not compromise the integrity of the aircraft," Qantas said in a statement.
The Boeing 747-400 landed safely before 3.30pm without incident.
The airline is working to accommodate passengers or offer them transport home before replacement service are organised.
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