An Emirates aircraft flew for nearly 14 hours with a large hole in its side. Passengers on the flight from Dubai to Brisbane, Australia were shocked when they noticed the hole upon disembarking on Friday, July 1, reports The Metro.
The airline said the hole was created after one of the aircraft’s tyres burst shortly after take-off from Dubai. Luckily, the Emirates plane was able to complete its journey without any accident.
One passenger on the flight, a man named Patrick, reported hearing a loud bang around 45 minutes into the flight. “There was a loud bang and I felt it through the floor as well,” he was quoted as saying by Courier Mail. “The cabin crew remained calm, stopped the food service and got on the phone and checked the wings, engines.”
On approaching Brisbane airport in Australia, the crew contacted Air Traffic Control, informing them that they suspected a tyre blew on takeoff and requesting emergency services on landing.
The damage occurred to the aircraft’s aerodynamic fairing, which is the outer panel.
“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,” a spokesperson for Emirates was quoted as saying.
“At no point did it have any impact on the fuselage, frame or structure of the aircraft.”
The spokesperson said that the fairing had been checked, replaced and cleared by Airbus, engineers and other relevant authorities.
The flight’s schedule was not affected by the incident and the plane landed safely.
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