A Qantas pilot was allegedly pushed into emergency action when a jet was hit by lightning while in the air, causing passengers to flee in terror.
The plane took off from Perth at 6.48 a.m. on Tuesday and was scheduled to land in Port Hedland at 8.55 a.m.
Instead, after the reported lightning strike, aircraft QF1206 was diverted and forced to land at Karratha Airport at 9.17am.
It happened only two days after a Qantas flight was forced to return to the gate when one of its engines caught fire on the runway, terrifying passengers.
A Qantas spokeswoman said that the safety of the allegedly struck by lightning aircraft was never jeopardized.
‘Aircraft are intended to withstand and fly safely when hit by lightning,’ added the spokeswoman. ‘However, it is protocol that they be examined at their arrival port following a strike.’
Following a two-hour delay, the passengers boarded another aircraft from Karratha to Port Hedland, arriving at 11.17 a.m.
Perth is two hours behind the east coast of Australia.
Engineers are examining the original aircraft to determine whether it was damaged.
The latest incident occurred two days after a Qantas flight was forced to abandon takeoff when one of its engines caught fire on the runway, terrifying passengers.
Following reports of an engine fire on Sunday, more than a hundred passengers were evacuated from the QF91 flight from Sydney to New Caledonia.
The air traffic control tower at Sydney Airport advised the pilot of the problem with the starboard engine, which was subsequently shut down as a precaution.
The plane was guided back to the terminal from the runway to enable passengers to exit and engineers to inspect the aircraft.
The aircraft has subsequently been allowed to fly, according to Qantas, and there was no evidence of fire when the engine was turned down.
‘After being warned by the control tower during taxiing, the pilots followed protocol and turned down the engine as a precaution,’ the airline said.
‘When the engine was turned off, there was no warning light in the cockpit and no evidence of fire.’ Engineers have evaluated the aircraft and determined that it is safe to return to operation. Passengers were re-booked on another aircraft this morning.
‘We appreciate the passengers’ patience and understanding.’
The pilot is said to have submitted a ‘pan-pan’ signal to the air traffic control tower, which is a low-level risk alert that does not pose an imminent threat to life.