Qantas plane lands in Singapore after mid-air emergency
Updated: November 04, 2010 11:29 IST
Local TV channels showed small amount of debris with red-white markings, but the airline hasn't confirmed if any debris fell.
A Qantas A380 superjumbo made a dramatic emergency landing in Singapore on Thursday after experiencing engine trouble over Indonesia, in the first mid-air emergency involving the giant Airbus plane.
The double-decker plane, which had taken off from Singapore and was bound for Sydney carrying 433 passengers, dumped fuel over Indonesia before returning to the city-state's Changi Airport trailing smoke.
Six fire engines swarmed the A380 on landing, spraying liquid on it, according to an AFP reporter.
One of the engines on the left wing looked to be missing, and the area around it was black, the reporter said.
Plane debris, including what appeared to be part of the tail of a Qantas jet, was found in the Indonesian town of Batam, after a mid-air explosion was heard on the ground.
"I didn't see a plane crash but I heard a loud explosion in the air. There were metal shards coming down from the sky into an industrial area in Batam," witness Noor Kanwa told AFP.
A spokesman for Australia's Qantas Airways said the plane was carrying 433 passengers and 26 crewmembers and there were no immediate reports of injuries.
Qantas has never suffered a fatal crash in its 90-year history.
