Qantas flight makes emergency landing in Azerbaijan

QANTAS AIRBUS A380-842 VH-OQH (MSN 050)

A Qantas flight travelling from Singapore (SIN/WSSS) to London (LHR/EGLL) has made an emergency landing in Azerbaijan several hours after taking off from Singapore.

Shortly after flying over the Georgian border, pilots were forced to make a 180-degree turn after receiving an intermittent fault indicator in the cockpit.

The plane landed safely at Baku Heydar Aliyev International Airport (GYD/UBBB) about 2.15pm (EST).

Flight QF1 took off from Singapore’s Changi Airport from runway 02R nine minutes after midnight and had been in the air for about nine hours before the diversion, according to flight tracking website Flightradar24.

Emergency services met the plane on arrival to the airport and engineers are currently inspecting the aircraft.

The plane made an emergency landing due to potential smoke in the cargo hold, which Qantas has since confirmed.

Initial investigations at Baku have found no evidence of smoke in the cargo hold, a Qantas spokesperson told SkyNews.com.au.

“The aircraft intermittently alerted the pilots to the potential of smoke in the cargo hold. Although it was considered likely to be a sensor fault, the aircraft diverted to Baku as a safety precaution. Initial investigations have found no evidence of smoke in the cargo hold," the spokesperson said.

“We thank customers for their patience, and we are working to get them on their way as quickly as possible.”

At the time of writing this the plane is still on the ground in Baku, and it is currently unknown how long it will be there for.

Aircraft Information:

Airline: Qantas

Code: QF/QFA

Aircraft: Airbus A380-842

Registration: VH-OQH

Serial Number: 050

Engines: 4 x RR Trent 972

First Flew: 28/08/2009

Age: 13 Yrs. 3Mts