Traumatic’: Qantas plane diverted after mid-air flames   :(

Sep 07, 2026
New Daily

A Qantas flight bound for Sydney was diverted in New Zealand after reports of an engine fire.

Liza-Jayne Loch was returning home from a business trip to New Zealand when her Qantas flight ran into trouble.

The plane was climbing above the scenic South Island’s mountain ranges on Saturday afternoon, bound for Sydney, when a bang shook the cabin.

A passenger seated nearest the left wing soon shouted “the engine’s on fire”, Loch recalled, as the cabin lights began to flicker.

Footage recorded by a passenger and shared with AAP shows flames appearing to issue from the plane’s left engine in a series of rapid bursts.

“I was sitting on the left-hand side of the plane, and the flames were very, very visible,” Loch said.

“There was a lot of screaming at the time.”


As the plane continued to gain altitude, Loch tried to comfort herself by recalling that modern jets could land safely on a single engine.

“That’s what I kept in my head, that we could actually fly on one engine,” she said.

“But the flames kept coming and the noise kept coming.”

QF122 suffered a suspected engine issue shortly after taking off from Queenstown on Saturday afternoon, before making a priority landing at Christchurch.


According to Flight Aware, the Boeing 737 landed about 52 minutes after take-off, touching down shortly before 5pm local time.

The cause of the incident has yet to be determined, but Qantas sent two engineers to Christchurch on Sunday to investigate.

Both engines are thought to have remained in operation for the duration of the flight.

Loch said conditions soon stabilised after the initial shock, while cabin staff took pains to comfort passengers.

“The crew were all terribly, terribly calming,” Loch said.

Emergency services were waiting on the tarmac when the flight landed, with passengers allowed to disembark as normal following a short wait.

“There were massive cheers when we landed,” Loch said.

A Qantas spokesperson said the plane was believed to have suffered an engine issue and steps would be taken to support affected customers.

“Our pilots are highly trained to manage situations like this and the aircraft landed safely,” they said.

“We know this would have been a distressing experience for passengers and will be contacting all customers to provide support.”

Affected passengers were put up in a hotel near the Christchurch International Airport before being booked on a complimentary flight to Sydney on Sunday.

While the second flight went off without a hitch, Loch said nerves were still high.

“I cried getting off the plane when we landed in Sydney,” Loch said.

“It was quite traumatic.”   :(

I sometimes wonder where and how often, these planes are serviced.  Yet again another Qantas plane.   :( 

As for the Amazon cargo plane crash in Miami ...

Looks like pilot error.

They seem to have touched down almost halfway along the runway, left wing up, left gear off the ground, no reverse thrust?

What the?  :o

Why didn't they try a go-around well before attempting an impossible landing?   >:(

whiteknight wrote on Sep 7^th, 2026 at 7:19am:

I sometimes wonder where and how often, these planes are serviced.  Yet again another Qantas plane.   :(

Yes - was it poor maintenance caused by cost cutting?    :-/

Having actually met and spoken with the person in charge of Qantas maintenance Dept.
I did ask "Why the move to Malaysia?"
The simple and COMMON answer for a lot of major big league Companies and industries is "LABOUR COSTS TOO HIGH IN AUSTRALIA."

I didn't press the issue, just accepted and knew it to be true.

The only answer I could think of was a) The cost reflects the maintenance QUALITY
b) Malaysia can offer same quality for 1/2 the cost

????

...mind you, that was just after Qantas made the outsource move.
By now, Australian Airport maintenance is probably full of cheap Asian, Indian & Muslim city plebs of bumf#@kery quality on high wages now anyway.  ::)

Jasin wrote on Sep 7^th, 2026 at 1:57pm:

Having actually met and spoken with the person in charge of Qantas maintenance Dept. I did ask "Why the move to Malaysia?" The simple and COMMON answer for a lot of major big league Companies and industries is "LABOUR COSTS TOO HIGH IN AUSTRALIA." I didn't press the issue, just accepted and knew it to be true. The only answer I could think of was a) The cost reflects the maintenance QUALITY b) Malaysia can offer same quality for 1/2 the cost ????

You get what you pay for.

The quality of   Australian labour has declined since 2000.
Look at Sydney & Melbourne. All pleb Asian, Indian & Muslim bumf@#very low quality peanut workers now and the wages just get higher.

Jasin wrote on Sep 7^th, 2026 at 2:04pm:

The quality of   Australian labour has declined since 2000. Look at Sydney & Melbourne. All pleb Asian, Indian & Muslim bumf@#very low quality peanut workers now and the wages just get higher.

We used to have large Qantas maintenance facilities here in Australia
but the Irish leprechaun closed it down.    ::)

Labour costs were too high.
Its a problem for Australia.

Captain Nemo wrote on Sep 7^th, 2026 at 12:39pm:

As for the Amazon cargo plane crash in Miami ... Looks like pilot error. They seem to have touched down almost halfway along the runway, left wing up, left gear off the ground, no reverse thrust? What the?  :o Why didn't they try a go-around well before attempting an impossible landing?   >:(

Pilot fatigue - pushed too hard by the company to make ends meet... could almost bet on it..

Jasin wrote on Sep 7^th, 2026 at 2:15pm:

Labour costs were too high. Its a problem for Australia.

What about cost of insurance?

Grappler Racist Filth wrote on Sep 7^th, 2026 at 2:48pm:

Captain Nemo wrote on Sep 7th, 2026 at 12:39pm: As for the Amazon cargo plane crash in Miami ... Looks like pilot error. They seem to have touched down almost halfway along the runway, left wing up, left gear off the ground, no reverse thrust? What the?  :o Why didn't they try a go-around well before attempting an impossible landing?   >:( Pilot fatigue - pushed too hard by the company to make ends meet... could almost bet on it..

Good point.

Captain Nemo wrote on Sep 7^th, 2026 at 11:11pm:

Grappler Racist Filth wrote on Sep 7th, 2026 at 2:48pm: Captain Nemo wrote on Sep 7th, 2026 at 12:39pm: As for the Amazon cargo plane crash in Miami ... Looks like pilot error. They seem to have touched down almost halfway along the runway, left wing up, left gear off the ground, no reverse thrust? What the?  :o Why didn't they try a go-around well before attempting an impossible landing?   >:( Pilot fatigue - pushed too hard by the company to make ends meet... could almost bet on it.. Good point.

Could be a diversity hire.

tallowood wrote on Sep 7^th, 2026 at 3:05pm:

Jasin wrote on Sep 7th, 2026 at 2:15pm: Labour costs were too high. Its a problem for Australia. What about cost of insurance?

Australia: Welcome to Rip Off Rock .
...Uluru & Alice Springs kinda sums up Australia

whiteknight wrote on Sep 7^th, 2026 at 7:19am:

I sometimes wonder where and how often, these planes are serviced.  Yet again another Qantas plane.   :(

My cousin was a senior maintenance engineer with Qantas. Some years ago after Joyce took over it was decided to outsource maintenance to foreign companies. My cousin was one of those sent to examine the work of these companies and report back.

He told me that he was with a company in, I think, Singapore. A  technician was given the task of checking the bolts that hold the flight deck windows in place. A simple task that a first year apprentice could perform but an important one nonetheless.  The technician reported back that the task was complete.  My cousin said bullshit because the task could not possibly have been completed in that short amount of time.  Turns out that procedure in this company was to check every third bolt, not every bolt as the Qantas standards required. 

Now this  was acceptable practice within the manufacturers guidelines,  however Qantas was then known for standards well superior to acceptable  practice. This company got the contract against the advice of my cousin and his colleagues and here we are today.

whiteknight wrote on Sep 7^th, 2026 at 7:19am:

I sometimes wonder where and how often, these planes are serviced.  Yet again another Qantas plane.   :(

Safer being serviced by diligent Asians then fat bloated lazy entitled Aussie unionists on medicinal marijuana

Belgarion wrote on Sep 8^th, 2026 at 5:00pm:

whiteknight wrote on Sep 7th, 2026 at 7:19am: I sometimes wonder where and how often, these planes are serviced.  Yet again another Qantas plane.   :(  My cousin was a senior maintenance engineer with Qantas. Some years ago after Joyce took over it was decided to outsource maintenance to foreign companies. My cousin was one of those sent to examine the work of these companies and report back. He told me that he was with a company in, I think, Singapore. A  technician was given the task of checking the bolts that hold the flight deck windows in place. A simple task that a first year apprentice could perform but an important one nonetheless.  The technician reported back that the task was complete.  My cousin said bullshit because the task could not possibly have been completed in that short amount of time.  Turns out that procedure in this company was to check every third bolt, not every bolt as the Qantas standards required.  Now this  was acceptable practice within the manufacturers guidelines,  however Qantas was then known for standards well superior to acceptable  practice. This company got the contract against the advice of my cousin and his colleagues and here we are today.

Thanks for the heads up - I won't fly Qantas now.

aquascoot wrote on Sep 8^th, 2026 at 5:16pm:

whiteknight wrote on Sep 7th, 2026 at 7:19am: I sometimes wonder where and how often, these planes are serviced.  Yet again another Qantas plane.   :(  Safer being serviced by diligent Asians then fat bloated lazy entitled Aussie unionists on medicinal marijuana

Bullshyte Scoot - their safety record was never better whilst the servicing/maintenance  was done in Australia.

Now they're another accident waiting to happen.

whiteknight wrote on Sep 7^th, 2026 at 7:19am:

I sometimes wonder where and how often, these planes are serviced.  Yet again another Qantas plane.   :(

You can google the answer yourself and have a good ol' read. Or you could go to this link:
https://www.qantasnewsroom.com.au/roo-tales/the-a-c-and-d-of-aircraft-maintenance


Quote:

Heavy Maintenance Heavy maintenance happens every 18 months to six years depending on the aircraft type and age. The C Check Happens every 18 months to two years (depending on type of aircraft) and takes three weeks. We recently took the opportunity when a number of our A330s were undergoing C Checks to upgrade the cabin interior at our Heavy Maintenance Base in Brisbane. The same thing is happening with some of our B737s. The D Check This is also known as a C4 or C8 check depending on the aircraft type. This check is performed every six years and the entire aircraft is basically dismantled and put back together. Everything in the cabin is taken out (seats, toilets, galleys, overhead bins) so engineers can inspect the metal skin of the aircraft, inside out. The engines are taken off.

Captain Nemo wrote on Sep 7^th, 2026 at 11:11pm:

Grappler Racist Filth wrote on Sep 7th, 2026 at 2:48pm: Captain Nemo wrote on Sep 7th, 2026 at 12:39pm: As for the Amazon cargo plane crash in Miami ... Looks like pilot error. They seem to have touched down almost halfway along the runway, left wing up, left gear off the ground, no reverse thrust? What the?  :o Why didn't they try a go-around well before attempting an impossible landing?   >:( Pilot fatigue - pushed too hard by the company to make ends meet... could almost bet on it.. Good point.

Captain "Steeeve" lets rip at these pilots ...

[media width=500]https://youtu.be/Xm6G7EOP5Qc[/media]

They went off the runway at 96 knots (178 Kph)

They throttled up to go around then backed off 4 seconds later.
Jet engines take a few seconds to spool up so they probably realised at that point it was too late.
No reverse thrust no speed brake and got off the wheel brakes when they dithered with going around.

When pilots land on aircraft carriers they power up before hitting the deck in case they need to go around so don't have to wait for engine to spool up the hook stops them.

As they say it's usually multiple failures that cause crashes instead of single issue.

Captain Nemo wrote on Sep 12^th, 2026 at 12:32am:

Captain Nemo wrote on Sep 7th, 2026 at 11:11pm: Grappler Racist Filth wrote on Sep 7th, 2026 at 2:48pm: Captain Nemo wrote on Sep 7th, 2026 at 12:39pm: As for the Amazon cargo plane crash in Miami ... Looks like pilot error. They seem to have touched down almost halfway along the runway, left wing up, left gear off the ground, no reverse thrust? What the?  :o Why didn't they try a go-around well before attempting an impossible landing?   >:( Pilot fatigue - pushed too hard by the company to make ends meet... could almost bet on it.. Good point. Captain "Steeeve" lets rip at these pilots ... [media width=500]https://youtu.be/Xm6G7EOP5Qc[/media]

Latest info on the crash ...

Sure enough, the pilot was an idiot.  :(

[media width=500]https://youtu.be/h9EJFE_7Cos[/media]

Meanwhile, more pilot stupidity.  :o

Vietnam Pilot applied the BRAKES?!


[media width=500]https://youtu.be/n0ox9650tis[/media]