Plane incident article w/ photo

RELIEF. . . singer Jon Bon Jovi calls friends after the Qantas aircraft returned to Los Angeles airport with engine trouble. Picture: Kevin Bull


Qantas jet in mid-air engine failure
Paul Whittaker in New York
17dec02
A QANTAS 747-400 jumbo jet carrying 191 passengers was forced to return to Los Angeles International airport yesterday after it suffered engine failure soon after take-off.



QF107, bound for New York's JFK Airport, experienced engine trouble about a quarter of the way into its ascent. The captain shut down the number one port side engine after an apparent turbine failure.

A loud cracking noise, or bang, was heard and some passengers reported seeing a sheet of flame coming from the stricken Rolls-Royce engine.

The plane had landed at LAX from Sydney two hours earlier after making a 13½ hour flight across the Pacific without incident.

Several VIPs were aboard the aircraft, including News Limited chairman Lachlan Murdoch and his wife, supermodel Sarah O'Hare, as well as former Ansett chairman and News Corporation board member Ken Cowley.

Mr Murdoch and Mr Cowley were travelling to New York to attend a News Corporation board meeting today.

Rock star Jon Bon Jovi, the headline act at the recent national Rumba festival, was also on board the plane which was stranded on the tarmac for more than two hours as cargo, baggage and catering supplies were offloaded on to a replacement Qantas jet.

Captain Paul Holland, on his last flight to New York before retiring next week after 35 years as a pilot with the national carrier, said it was the first time in his flying career he had been forced to shut down an engine.

"It is ironic it should happen on my last flight, but we train for this," Captain Holland said.

He said Qantas pilots trained for just such an event during flight simulated drills every three months.

Fire rescue crews were waiting beside the runway but the plane landed without incident before a police motorcade escorted the jet to a remote section of the airport.

The flight, in a replacement 747-400, eventually took off 3½ hours later than scheduled with Captain Holland once again at the controls.

Captain Holland said the cause of the engine failure was unknown and was still being investigated.

Initially, the flight crew suspected the incident was the result of wake turbulence from another aircraft.

Oh Thank the powers that be that hes okay ,and that the 191 passengers on board will all be home somewhere safe for the holidays. Bless the pilot.
Im going to figure out how to get a message to that Captain Hollands letting him know hes my xmas angel'

hmmm why is Jon using a phone on the plane?? silly boy

Thankfully everyone onboard is alright and they can all go home to their families.

er...
Why is this in the news?!?!

Engines fail all the time, man! There's the prospect of War, George Dubya is once again on a bloodthirsty "Star Wars" crusade, and THIS make s the papers?

We're all doomed...
________
Ferrari 456

Thank god everyone is okay. I just can't even imagine how those passengers (including Jon) must have been feeling. There really are angels among us.

LoL


its No big deal really it isnt

In all reality, it's not the fact that JBJ was on the plane that it made the news. It's that Rupert Murdoch's heir was... it was the Australia media that first reported this, although it took place in the US. It's an Australian airline and Murdoch's son was on board... that's the news. That someone who played Rumba was also on it was bonus.

Thank you for clearing that up derek bliss.yes it was murdoch,his supermodel wife some really big ceos or something.Most articles I read had jovis name last.

It's a pity it didn't go down, Bounce sales would've picked up.