Qantas flight to Fiji turns back to Sydney after 'potential mechanical issue'

Qantas says a flight was forced to return to Sydney "as a precaution" this morning after pilots received a warning about a "potential mechanical issue".

QF101, from Sydney to Fiji, pushed back about 8:30am and spent almost two hours circling over the NSW coast before landing again about 10:50am.

A Qantas spokesperson said the pilots followed standard procedure after receiving a "fault indicator", and that engineers would examine the plane.

Qantas said the plane landed normally and it was not an emergency or priority landing.

"Our Sydney to Fiji flight has returned to Sydney as a precaution after pilots received a fault indicator about a potential mechanical issue," the spokesperson said.

"The pilots followed standard procedures and the aircraft has landed normally in Sydney."

Qantas said it hoped to get passengers on their way to Fiji "as quickly as possible".

It is the second headache in as many days involving the airline's fleet of Boeing 737s, after the pilot of a flight from Auckland to Sydney yesterday issued a mayday call when one of the plane's engines failed.

In both instances, the flights landed safely.

Qantas flight QF144 issued the emergency warning about 2:30pm EDT yesterday mid-flight, after one of two engines on the Boeing 737-800 failed.

That alert was later downgraded to a "PAN" (possible assistance needed).

Dozens of ambulances, police and fire and rescue crews were waiting at Sydney Airport when the plane landed.

After disembarking, passengers yesterday told the media the crew kept the atmosphere on board calm and professional and didn't inform them of the engine failure.

Some said they heard a little "bang" during the trip and felt some light turbulence but there was no announcement from the flight deck.

This year, Qantas was rated the world's safest airline after dropping down to seventh place in 2022, according to AirlineRatings.com.

Last year Qantas toppled down the scale due to a "slight increase in incidents coupled with the fleet age," according to the website.

Original story link: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-19/qantas-flight-to-fiji-turns-back-to-sydney/101871602?fbclid=IwAR1wRPBgnYOxg0LmWK_eGaQIy2Pmv-qhjvMMuQM9Yp-fSiRxg10qDkihxWY