Qantas plane lands safely after engine failure

A Qantas Airways flight landed safely after a problem with one of its engines on a flight from Australia to New Zealand, the company said today, the latest in a series of mechanical incidents for the airline.

One of four engines on a Boeing 747-300 from Melbourne was “reduced to idle” speed while the airplane approached Auckland Airport last night, Qantas spokeswoman Holly Williams said.

However, the pilot managed to land the aircraft with 219 passengers and 16 crew safely, she said.

“A faulty fuel-flow regulator was replaced overnight and the flight (to Los Angeles) is due to depart ... this (Thursday) afternoon,” she said.

Meanwhile, Australia’s airline safety body expanded an investigation of Qantas after the company announced it temporarily pulled six Boeing 737-400 airplanes from service because of irregularities in maintenance records.

In another incident today, a Boeing 747 had to be taken out of service to replace a screw in the plane’s tail. The airline confirmed that urgent maintenance was needed.

Ms Williams also confirmed another Qantas Boeing 747 was grounded temporarily in Melbourne yesterday because of a problem with a flap indicator in the cockpit.

The problems were the latest in a spate of incidents for the airline since one of its planes made an emergency landing in Manila last month after an explosion tore a large hole in the fuselage. Nobody was hurt in that mid-air incident.