Qantas hit by fresh mishap

Nov 17, 2010, 5:23 GMT

Sydney - A Qantas passenger jet was forced to turn back to Johannesburg for an emergency landing when a bird was sucked into one of its engines in the latest in a string of mishaps for Australia's biggest airline.

The Boeing 747 experienced the bird strike - something that Qantas said Wednesday occurs among its fleet an average of three times a year - just minutes into the flight from South Africa to Australia.

On Tuesday, an A320 belonging to budget subsidiary Jetstar returned to Brisbane after the captain was informed of a hydraulic fluid leak. Later in the day, a Boeing 717 that had taken off for Darwin turned back to Alice Springs after it was hit by lightning, causing minor damage to the commuter plane.

Earlier in the week, a Boeing 747 on its way to Argentina returned to Sydney after smoke entered the cockpit and a Qantas Boeing 767 abandoned a flight to Melbourne and returned to Perth after the captain detected 'abnormal vibrations' from one of the engines.

Qantas grounded its fleet of six A380 superjumbos after an engine exploded shortly after take-off on a flight from Singapore to Sydney on November 4.

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