Ja Singh 2 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 QF68 was four hours into its journey from Hong Kong to Perth when it hit severe turbulence over Borneo. Passengers say the first indication of trouble was when the seatbelt warning light began flashing. Keith Huckstable was on the flight and says the incident happened about 2:30am. "All of a sudden the plane dropped - I reckon about a 30-storey building - and there was a hell of a kafuffle in the plane," he said. Some of the 200 passengers say there was screaming and crying, as anyone not wearing a seatbelt hit the roof. Mr Huckstable says some passengers began clapping when the plane landed safely in Perth. "There was just about a raucous clap, just the fact that we were back on terra firma again - it was great," he said. Qantas described the injuries suffered by passengers as minor. The head of Qantas corporate and government affairs, David Epstein, says the airline has confidence in the A330. "There were no indications of any events to do with the aircraft or its systems. It appears to be purely a meteorological event," he said. In October last year, an airbus flying from Singapore to Perth nosedived hundred of feet in seconds, injuring 70 passengers. An inquiry found a computer problem was responsible. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is investigating the cause of the mishap. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ignatius 4 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 Like they say it.. now they magnify anything that has to do with A330... poor QF Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Li Ren 2 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 "All of a sudden the plane dropped - I reckon about a 30-storey building - and there was a hell of a kafuffle in the plane," he said. Hopefully there wasn't anyone in the lavatory at that moment Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ignatius 4 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 Hopefully there wasn't anyone in the lavatory at that moment ANd got his head stuck in the bowl? hahaha Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KK Lee 5 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 Teach those adamant pax a lesson for not fasten their seat belts Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
flee 5 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 That is one of the reasons I only undo my seatbelt if I need to go to the toilet... Best to keep seatbelt on when you are seated... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Alif A. F. 0 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 Just now I can see towering grey clouds hanging over east of BKI... <_> Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Michael Chai 0 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 Lesson from the story: Ever ever wear seatbelts whenever you are in seat. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MIR 2 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 Registration is VH-QPI "Cairns", Airbus A330-303 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Y C LEONG 1 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 (edited) maybe should say... another incident linked to a A330 again??? though it is due to turbulence, but some reports have been speculating it is computer malfunction onboard again.. how true is this, u decide... Edited June 22, 2009 by Y C LEONG Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tony 1 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 maybe should say... another incident linked to a A330 again??? though it is due to turbulence, but some reports have been speculating it is computer malfunction onboard again.. how true is this, u decide... we're experiencing nationwide crappy weather downunder. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sing Yew 1 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 From The Australian: Incidents involving Australia's fleet of A330 Airbus aircraft: Jan 19, 2004 - A newly acquired Qantas A330-300 flying from Melbourne to Perth is forced to make an emergency landing in Adelaide after fumes leak into cabin, with seven crew members and two of the 274 passengers taken to hospital with nausea-like symptoms. Aug 21, 2005 - Nine people, including two Australians, are injured during the evacuation of 178 passengers from a Perth-bound Qantas jet in Osaka, Japan, after a smoke sensor was activated in the aircraft's hold. Jan-June 2006 - A wasp infestation among Qantas aircraft, particularly A330s, at Brisbane Airport, causes three flights to be aborted during takeoff as well as a number of flight cancellations. July 24, 2007 - More than 300 passengers are left stranded in Bali when a Bangkok to Melbourne Jetstar flight is forced to divert to Denpasar Airport after an engine failure. Oct 8, 2008 - Almost 50 people are injured, some seriously, when a Qantas jet, with 303 passengers and a crew of 10 bound from Singapore to Perth, plunges up to 2,000 metres over Western Australia. Nov 14, 2008 - A Qantas jet carrying 278 passengers from Sydney to Shanghai turns back after a weather radar malfunction on board. Nov 29, 2008 - A Qantas jet serviced just days earlier and flying from Perth to Singapore has to turn back after the crew is forced to turn off one of its two engines when an engine oil warning light flashes. Qantas says inspections indicated a fault with the engine starter motor. Dec 5, 2008 - A Qantas jet becomes bogged at Sydney airport as a towbar holding the aircraft fails and two of the jet's wheels become stuck in the grass beside the taxiway. Dec 29, 2008 - A Qantas jet flying from Perth to Singapore is forced to return to Perth after the autopilot disconnects at 36,000 feet about 500km northwest of Perth. Air safety authorities say the circumstances were similar to the October incident over WA. Jan 28, 2009 - An A330 defence aircraft carrying about 80 Australian personnel and supplies to the Middle East is forced to make an emergency landing in Darwin after fumes filled the cabin. Three people were hospitalised and later recovered. June 9, 2009 - Qantas announces it has received no safety directives for its A330 fleet following the May 31 crash of an Air France A330-200 that killed all 228 people aboard in the Atlantic Ocean. June 10, 2009 - A fire in the cockpit of a Jetstar A330-300 carrying 186 passengers from Japan to Australia forces the pilot to make an emergency safe landing in Guam. June 22, 2009 - Thirteen people are injured when a Qantas A330-300 carrying 206 passengers strikes severe turbulence over Borneo on a flight from Hong Kong to Perth. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
C.Foo 3 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 Wow I'm so suprised wink wink Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ignatius 4 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 Wow I'm so suprised wink wink Me too.. A330 all ah?!?!?! Anyway.. if the turbulence occured above borneo.. why bother go to GUAM? just land at Bki or Kch or Bwn lah.. so much nearer rite?? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Naim 6 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 Qantas jet in the dark on turbulence risk Nicolas Perpitch | June 23, 2009 Article from: The Australian THE inability of radar on a Perth-bound Qantas Airbus to detect ice crystals will be at the centre of an air safety investigation into severe turbulence that threw passengers out of their seats, injuring up to 12 people. The A330-300 aircraft plunged suddenly over Borneo early yesterday before landing safely at Perth International Airport just before 8am. "All of a sudden the plane dropped -- I reckon about a 30-storey building -- and there was a hell of a kerfuffle in the plane," passenger Keith Huckstable told ABC radio. Qantas said crew on the Airbus, which was carrying 206 passengers and 13 crew, were given little notice of the approaching turbulence, four hours after leaving Hong Kong. Qantas said last night it appeared nothing had gone wrong with flight QF68's systems, and the airline retained confidence in the A330 despite several recent incidents. Three weeks ago, an Air France A330-200 mysteriously crashed into the Atlantic Ocean, killing all 228 people on board, while last October 70 people were injured on a Qantas A330-300 flying over Western Australia when the plane suddenly lost altitude after an apparent computer malfunction. Australian and International Pilots Association president Barry Jackson said he had spoken to QF68's captain, Paul Flack, and the aircraft may have hit cloud-associated convective turbulence, which the weather radar could not pick up. "The radar is designed to pick up moisture; it's not designed to pick up turbulence or ice crystals," Captain Jackson said. "Around Borneo there is some high terrain and obviously that's probably where the clouds have come from." After the jet landed in Perth, Captain Flack told passengers convective turbulence was not normally visible to weather radar, which was designed to detect moisture but not ice crystals. Qantas corporate affairs manager David Epstein also said convective turbulence was likely to have caused the plane to soar 800 feet before falling back to its cruising altitude of 38,000 feet. Six passengers and one crew member were taken to Royal Perth Hospital suffering neck and back pain after the plane landed. One man reportedly received a cut to the head. All were released yesterday afternoon. Passengers likened the experience, which lasted 15-20 seconds, to plunging into a deep hole. Lightning cracked outside, people screamed and those not wearing seatbelts were flung about the cabin. Michelle Knight was part of a group of 12 people, including six children, returning to Perth from a holiday in Hong Kong. "It really shook everyone up," she said. "There were things flying everywhere. You just turned around and there were things all over the floor. We saw all the people in front of us all go up at the same time and all go down at the same time. Everyone sort of went sideways." Another member of the group, Elsie Hudson, said her friend Vicky Richards was one of those injured. "There was this massive drop and Vicky, who was with us, she didn't have a seatbelt on and she hit the roof, the console, and she actually cracked it and took one of the light covers off," she said. "She was in a lot of pain in the end, her headache progressed worse and worse and her neck got worse and worse, and by the end she couldn't move." Passengers received an apology from Qantas and an offer of counselling and the reimbursement of medical expenses. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau will investigate the incident. http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/busin...4-23349,00.html Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Isaac 0 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 This whole Airbus A330 drama seems to involve only newer 330 and not older ones. MH, TG, CX all seem to operate their 330 just fine. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sharil Abdul Rahman 0 Report post Posted June 22, 2009 This whole Airbus A330 drama seems to involve only newer 330 and not older ones. MH, TG, CX all seem to operate their 330 just fine. *touch wood* Wow, so having older A330s is not so bad afterall... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
S V Choong 4 Report post Posted June 23, 2009 (edited) *touch wood* Wow, so having older A330s is not so bad afterall... Oh yeah, never mind the fuel economy and technical problems associated with the older A333s Seems like the dramas are with those newer GE powered A330s.... Me too.. A330 all ah?!?!?! Anyway.. if the turbulence occured above borneo.. why bother go to GUAM? just land at Bki or Kch or Bwn lah.. so much nearer rite?? I think you are confusing with two different flights. The one that went to Guam was a Jetstar A330 enroute from Japan to Eastern Australia, thus stopping at Guam will make more sense. The flight that experienced turbulence above Borneo was the Qantas A333 flight yesterday enroute from HKG to PER and they did not stop at Guam. Edited June 23, 2009 by S V Choong Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Michael Chai 0 Report post Posted June 23, 2009 Almost A330 incidents are related to weather factors. Feeling suspicious <_> Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ryan Soh 3 Report post Posted June 23, 2009 Almost A330 incidents are related to weather factors. Feeling suspicious <_> There are two distinct cases here. One is the malfunction of the onboard computers and the other weather related. Although the end result is a very similar turbulent flying pattern. Since the A330 is under intense scrituniy here, even if a flight attendant's button pops in the cabin will cause the media to go into a frenzy to report it. Turbulence is a very normal occurence during northern summer especially over South China Sea and Indian / Pacific / Atlantic Ocean. This will intensify during Aug-Sep before cooling off when autumn arrives. Seriously, it is a non-issue. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Alif A. F. 0 Report post Posted June 23, 2009 Sometimes I get pissed of how some non-Aussie spelled 'Quantas'... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Naim 6 Report post Posted June 23, 2009 ... Seriously, it is a non-issue. Big issue for me if I'm on the stricken plane. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tony 1 Report post Posted June 23, 2009 There are two distinct cases here. One is the malfunction of the onboard computers and the other weather related. Although the end result is a very similar turbulent flying pattern. Since the A330 is under intense scrituniy here, even if a flight attendant's button pops in the cabin will cause the media to go into a frenzy to report it. Turbulence is a very normal occurence during northern summer especially over South China Sea and Indian / Pacific / Atlantic Ocean. This will intensify during Aug-Sep before cooling off when autumn arrives. Seriously, it is a non-issue. Partially agree with you. I don't think we can, at this stage, factor out severe weather having to cause the crash of the Air France A330. As for turbulence, I do feel that some people take the seatbelt advisory (i.e. keep your seat belts fastened whilst you are seated) for granted. I don't think any of the Chinese/Taiwanese carriers would apologise like Qantas did if their passengers experienced clear air turbulence inflight. For those passengers, it'll be more like "it's one of those bumpy flights again". You know, "hopefully better luck next time lah~". Just my 2 cents. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Isaac 0 Report post Posted June 23, 2009 Sometimes I get pissed of how some non-Aussie spelled 'Quantas'... Many often read Qantas as "Kent-tas" too Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tony 1 Report post Posted June 23, 2009 Many often read Qantas as "Kent-tas" too My GPS does that Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
