MELBOURNE, Australia (AFP) — Passengers aboard a Qantas jet that was forced to abort a domestic flight after a landing gear door failed to retract were never in any danger, the airline said Tuesday.
A Boeing 737-800 of the Australian airline was forced back to Adelaide airport shortly after take-off late Monday, in an air safety scare that came just three days after a Qantas jumbo jet was involved in a mid-air drama.
"Qantas flight 692 operating between Adelaide and Melbourne performed a routine 'air turn-back' shortly after take-off, due to an indication of one of the landing gear doors failing to retract," a spokeswoman told AFP.
"The aircraft landed without incident and all passengers were accommodated on other flights. There was no safety risk at any time," she said.
She dismissed a local newspaper report quoting passengers as saying there was "chaos" in the cabin after a door opened in mid-flight.
The passengers were informed of what was happening as the plane returned to Adelaide, before they were transferred to other flights, she said.
The incident came three days after a Qantas Boeing 747-400 en route to Melbourne from Hong Kong was forced to make an emergency landing in Manila after a large hole was ripped in its fuselage.
The plane, which had originated in London and was carrying 365 passengers and crew, plunged 6,000 metres (20,000 feet) before stabilising, then made an emergency landing in Manila on Friday.
Australian Air Transport Safety Board investigators are focusing on whether an oxygen bottle used for emergency back-up for the cockpit exploded mid-flight, tearing a three-metre (10-foot) hole in the Boeing's fuselage.
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