On 1 July, an Emirates Airbus A380 landed at Brisbane International Airport with a large hole blown in the left wing fairing, reportedly coming from a detached bolt in the nosegear.
The Airbus A380-800, with registration A6-EVK, was performing flight EK430 from Dubai International to Brisbane when the large hole came to light during an inspection after landing in Brisbane.
According to Avherald, the crew members informed the Brisbane tower about the possible damage due to a blown tire on take-off at Dubai airport. After suspecting the damage, the crew members requested emergency services on stand-by.
The aircraft probably sustained the damage during takeoff from Dubai before it eventually landed on Brisbane’s runway 19R. The aircraft made a safe landing but became immobilized on the runway.
Emergency services initially found the large hole was blown into the root fairing, as well as “penetration” on the underside of the fuselage.
Emirates has issued the below statement regarding the incident:
Our flight EK430 flying from Dubai to Brisbane on 1 July experienced a technical fault. One of the aircraft’s 22 tyres ruptured during cruise, causing damage to a small portion of the aerodynamic fairing, which is an outer panel or the skin of the aircraft. At no point did it have any impact on the fuselage, frame or structure of the aircraft. The aircraft landed safely in Brisbane and all passengers disembarked as scheduled. The fairing has been completely replaced, checked and cleared by engineers, Airbus and all relevant authorities. The safety of our passengers and crew has always been our top priority.
Emirates Airline
Feature Image: Twitter
So very thankful my son arrived safely off this flight. He says he heard a loud bang. No wonder! This is horrifying to see.
I agree. Too much was taken to chance. WIth a GAPING HOLE like that in the fuselage/wing coupling the aircraft, in my opinion (I hold a Commercial Pilot’s Licence) would be non-airworthy. It should have not continued its flight in this case. Of course, it’s a costly and annoying exercise to dump fuel and prepare the aircraft for the correct weight and balance for a landing after taking off with full fuel and Pax. The pilots obviously did not know the extent of the damage. Going by the published photo of the hole, this would be able to be seen from the passenger window…I wonder if anyone noticed?
I flew this exact aircraft on July 29th from Melbourne to Dubai
After the EK botched takeoff that continued to Washington DC, and the ITA A330 that continued to FCO with a damaged wing, and now this conscious decision to continue to Brisbane despite knowing something with the gear went wrong, I’m wondering if any pilots here can discuss procedures guiding decisions to continue to destinations rather than returning immediately to the airport. What’s going on with these decisions to continue flying?
Tanks are full of combustible, better land with a few gallons that full capacity, and circle ⭕ and circle for hours to drop off.