Qantas A380 Operated Flight Made A U-turn to Sydney

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SYDNEY- Australian flag carrier, Qantas Airways (QF) flight from Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (SYD) to Johannesburg (JNB) made a precautionary landing back at SYD on December 25, 2024.

According to reports, the Qantas Airbus A380-operated flight made a U-turn after experiencing a mechanical issue.

Qantas A380 U-Turn to Sydney

According to FlightRadar24 data, Qantas flight QF63 took off from Sydney at 11:18 PM UTC. After being airborne for around five hours, the flight crew reported some mechanical issues with the Airbus A380 aircraft.

The mechanical issue can be related to anything ranging from landing gear issues, hydraulic system failure, engine-related problems, flight control systems functional issues, or any structural and mechanical systems-related issues. The airline has not specified the exact reason. However, it told SimpleFlying,

“A flight from Sydney to Johannesburg returned to Sydney due to a mechanical issue. The pilots followed normal procedures and returned to Sydney for the aircraft to be checked by engineers.

Customers will be provided with accommodation, transfers and meal vouchers and reaccommodated on a 7am flight tomorrow on a different aircraft. We want to thank them for their patience and understanding.”

Qantas Official Statement

At the time of the mechanical issue, the flight was near the coast of Antarctica and the flight crew decided to make a U-turn. The airport authority was alerted of the situation and was told to stay prepared in case something happened during the landing. Gladly, the flight landed safely in Sydney at 8:32 AM UTC.

The flight was operated by Airbus A380-842, registered as VH-OQG. Further, it is a 15.4-year-old aircraft and is powered by four Rolls-Royce engines.

The flight QF63 departed today December 26, 2024, and is operated by A380, registered as VH-OQA. It is the oldest Airbus A380 aircraft in the Qantas fleet.

Qantas A380 makes headlines following multiple fleet reliability and some maintenance-related issues.

Tool Inside Qantas A380 Engine

Australian Transport Safety Bureau revealed a Qantas Airbus A380 flew over 290 hours with a 1.25-meter nylon turning tool lodged inside its engine. The tool remained undetected through 34 flight cycles after being left during maintenance at Los Angeles Airport (LAX).

A maintenance worker left the tool in the left outer engine’s intermediate-pressure compressor during a December 6 inspection. The worker departed early for medical reasons, expecting colleagues to remove the tool. Multiple engineers rotated shifts during the three-day maintenance period.

Two inspections failed to locate the tool. The first engineer searched without a flashlight, while the second inspection overlooked the inlet cowl area. Engineers misidentified the missing item as a larger gearbox turning tool, expecting it to be more visible.

Maintenance software logged a missing tool report but required follow-up actions never occurred. The aircraft received clearance to fly despite the known missing tool. Qantas personnel in Sydney requested the removal of the report, leading to a downgrade of the tool’s missing status.

Engineers discovered the tool behind low-pressure compressor blades during routine maintenance a month later. The Safety Bureau found no engine damage, though airflow deformed the tool. Engineers note the tool could have caused catastrophic engine failure if positioned differently, particularly in front of the low-pressure compressor.

Aircraft engineers stressed the severity of Foreign Object Debris risks. They highlighted that standard practices require strict tool tracking, noting the high risk of catastrophic engine failure from such incidents, even though the aircraft might survive such a failure.

Similar Incident

A Qantas Airbus A380 executing flight QF2 made an emergency return to London Heathrow Airport (LHR) on July 14, 2023, after encountering technical problems during its London-Singapore-Sydney route.

Flight Radar 24 data shows the aircraft departed London Heathrow at 8:30 PM UTC. The flight crew detected technical issues 90 minutes into the flight, prompting a U-turn at 10:02 PM UTC.

The aircraft maintained its cruising altitude of 34,000 feet throughout the return journey, indicating the problem did not affect cabin pressurization. The crew opted for a precautionary landing approach without fuel dumping and did not trigger the emergency transponder code Squawk 7700.

The A380 landed safely at London Heathrow at 12:13 AM UTC, completing a two-hour return journey after the initial problem detection. The aircraft involved, registered as VH-OQI, is a 13-year-old Airbus A380-842 that joined the Qantas fleet in 2011.

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Qantas Same Flight Makes U-Turn Twice in A Day to New Zealand

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