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'It was absolutely terrifying'
25/07/2008 09:36 - (SA)
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| Airline mechanics look at the damaged right wing fuselage of a Qantas Airways Boeing 747-400 passenger plane. (Bullit Marquez, AP) |
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Manila - Passengers on a Qantas jumbo jet bound for Melbourne told how the plane plunged 6 000m and debris flew through the cabin in an "absolutely terrifying" mid-flight ordeal on Friday.
The Qantas Boeing 747 plane, carrying 346 passengers and 19 crew, made an emergency landing in the Philippine capital Manila after a rupture in its fuselage.
Speaking to AFP at Manila airport and to Australian media, passengers told how the aircraft was left with a "gaping hole" in its carriage, and there had been "explosive" decompression in the cabin.
Melbourne woman June Kane said debris shot through the cabin.
"There was a terrific boom and bits of wood and debris just flew forward into first (class) and the oxygen masks dropped down," she told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
"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."
'You see the hole and you realise we were very lucky'
Phil Rescall, a 40-year-old Englishman, said the crew had been very calm and there was no panic.
"The shock came when many got off the plane and saw the hole," he told AFP.
"You see the hole and you realise we were very lucky," he added.
"Some people were crying, some people were pretty shaken when they saw the hole."
Another English passenger, Robin McGeechan, 42, said that despite the bang there was little panic.
"There was no warning, just a big bang and then there was depressurisation of the cabin and the oxygen masks dropped," he said in Manila.
"The engines of the plane never stopped running. so I did not think the damage was serious," he said. "We thought we could just set down and then take off again.
Children burst into tears
"We were told a door had popped. We only realised that there was a great big hole in the plane after we landed," McGeechan added.
June Kane said the problem seemed to centre on the baggage compartment of the plane.
"I'm looking at the plane now and on the left-hand side, just forward of the wing, there's a gaping hole from the wing to the underbody," she said.
"It's about two metres by four metres and there's baggage hanging out so you assume that there's a few bags that may have gone missing.
An unnamed passenger told the Melbourne Herald Sun's website how children burst into tears after a "quick bang" reverberated through the cabin. She said the plane plunged, then stabilised after about five minutes.
Melbourne man Brendan McClements praised the crew for landing the plane safely.
"The crew were terrific, they did a great job. Everyone gave them a round of applause as we landed," he told the Herald Sun.
Qantas said initial inspections revealed the aircraft had sustained a hole in its fuselage, and it was currently being inspected by engineers.
It said there were no reports of any injuries to passengers or crew.
A Qantas supervisor in Manila said passengers had been taken to hotels in the city. An official said the flight originated in London and had been due to arrive in Melbourne on Friday evening.
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