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Qantas plane with hole in fuselage lands in Manila

A photo released by the Manila International Airport Media Affairs office shows Qantas pilot Captain John Francis Bartels viewing the damaged plane that had been forced to make an emergency landing in Manila yesterday. PHOTO: EPA

A Qantas Boeing 747 flying to Melbourne made an emergency landing in Manila yesterday after a dramatic mid-air rupture that left a “gaping hole” in its fuselage, officials and passengers said.

Stunned passengers reported how the jumbo, which had taken off from London and stopped in Hong Kong, plunged 6,000m in what one said was an “absolutely terrifying” ordeal.

An urgent investigation is under way into what punched a hole about 3m in diameter into the fuselage near the right wing.

A Qantas spokeswoman said the plane, carrying 346 passengers and 19 crew, was undergoing an inspection on the ground in Manila, where luggage could be clearly seen jutting out of the hole.

“There was a terrific boom, and bits of wood and debris just flew forward into first [class] and the oxygen masks dropped down,” June Kane, a passenger from Melbourne, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.

“We were told that one of the rear doors, a hole had blown into it, but I’ve since looked at the plane and there’s a gigantic gaping hole in the plane. It was absolutely terrifying, but I have to say everyone was very calm,” she added, speaking from the Philippine capital.

Qantas chief executive officer Geoff Dixon said initial inspections showed the aircraft had sustained a hole in its fuselage, and it was being inspected by engineers.

He said the flight crew performed emergency procedures after oxygen masks were deployed and there were no reports of any injuries.

In a statement, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau said the plane had been flying at 8,800m when the crew were forced into an emergency descent after a section of the fuselage separated and resulted in rapid decompression of the cabin.

It said the crew descended the aircraft to 3,000m “in accordance with established procedures” and diverted the plane safely to Manila.

The bureau said it was sending four investigators to Manila to assist local authorities with the investigation.

Qantas flight QF30, which took off from Hong Kong at 9am, had been scheduled to arrive in Melbourne at 11:45am GMT, according to the Qantas Web site.
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