Chilling vision after Qantas engine fire at Sydney Airport

A passenger on board a Qantas flight taking off from Sydney Airport has described the chilling moment its engine failed mid-flight.

Dramatic video captured from the window of a plane landing at Sydney Airport shows a huge fire burning right next to the airport.

An engine explosion triggered a huge grassfire at Sydney Airport and flights were aborted from landing.

It’s understood the fire was started after an aircraft’s engine exploded on Qantas flight QF520 as the plane took off.

Passengers on-board the flight to Brisbane reported hearing a loud bang.

The plane circled and landed safely back at Sydney Airport with 174 people on board. No serious injuries have been reported.

Dozens of police cars and fire trucks descended on the airport, with aviation Rescue and Firefighting on the scene along with Fire and Rescue NSW to extinguish the blaze next to the airport’s third runway.

ABC journalist Mark Willacy was on board and described the moment he and his fellow passengers realised something was wrong.

It wasn’t the bang or the shudder that made my blood run cold. It was the plane’s urgent struggle to get altitude,” he wrote on the ABC’s website.

“As the plane slowly gained altitude we banked west, and kept banking.

“There was nothing from the cockpit. But we knew we weren’t heading to Brisbane. We were going to struggle back to Sydney Airport.

“I looked at my fellow passengers. They were dead quiet, but their faces betrayed serious concern.

“Then we hit Mother Earth and the passengers broke out in applause. Some cheered.

“The captain and the crew were amazing, the passengers calm and disciplined.”

Channel Nine producer Georgina Lewis was also on board the flight and described the scary scene.

A grass fire has broken out at Sydney Airport, reportedly after a malfunction with an aircraft's engine on takeoff. Picture: 9News

View from the Brighton Le Sands foreshore.

“We were taking off and we heard a bang just as we took off and one of the engines appeared to have gone. There was silence on board for a while, it felt like we weren’t gaining much altitude,” she said via Channel Nine.

“The pilot came on about 10 minutes later to allay concerns re safety and to explain that they had a problem with the right-hand engine on takeoff and they had to shut it down for safety reasons.

“I’m assuming they then had to prepare everyone on the ground so we were circling Sydney over the water for quite some time until we were able to land, it appears on one engine, safely, with a lot of cheering from on board, I can tell you that.”

Ms Lewis said it was a full flight and there were “cheers of elation on touchdown”.

“Fire trucks have been assessing the plane from the outside and we’re being escorted by them from the terminal,” she continued.

“I can just see some emergency service vehicles around us, but when we came in for landing I could see a big line of smoke and we’re assuming that may have come from us, we don’t know on board.”

A Qantas spokesperson emphasised that their pilots are highly trained to deal with scenarios like the one seen today.

“One of our flights to Brisbane experienced a suspected engine failure after take-off from Sydney Airport this afternoon. After circling for a short period of time, the aircraft landed safely at Sydney Airport,” the statement read.

“Our pilots are highly trained to handle situations like this and the aircraft landed safely after the appropriate procedures were conducted.

“We understand this would have been a distressing experience for customers and we will be contacting all customers this afternoon to provide support.

“We will also be conducting an investigation into what caused the engine issue.”

A Sydney Airport spokesperson confirmed the emergency landing took place just after 1pm on Friday.

“This departure of aircraft coincided with a grass fire along the eastern side of the airport’s parallel runway, which was brought under control by teams from the Aviation Rescue Fire Fighting Service,” the spokesperson said.

Emergency services rushed to the scene.

“It’s not clear at this stage if the two incidents are linked and investigations are continuing.

“With the safe arrival of the aircraft, Sydney Airport’s priority is to conduct a full inspection of its parallel runway and to return it to service as quickly as possible.

“Sydney Airport’s main runway is operational, however, passengers should also expect some delays and we thank everyone for their patience.

“Passengers who are travelling today are also encouraged to check with their airline regarding the status of their flight, or via the online flight information boards on Sydney Airport’s website.”

More to come.