‘Mayday’: ATSB investigating after Qantas flight’s fuel reserves run low

The pilots were forced to call an emergency in order to jump the queue to land safely.

Pilots on a Perth-bound flight were forced to declare a “mayday” after running low on fuel while in a mid-air queue.

The Brisbane to Perth Qantas flight 933 declared the emergency during descent on Monday.

Before departure, pilots were told to carry an additional 10 minutes’ worth of fuel due to expected holding in Perth.

When the Qantas Boeing 737 aircraft arrived into Perth’s airspace the pilots were told there would be a 16 minute holding period.

After 10 minutes of holding, the pilots requested a priority landing and were told they needed to declare a mayday to get priority to jump the queue past four other aircrafts to land.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau is investigating the incident. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Andrew Henshaw

The plane landed without incident and with reserves intact.

CASA regulations require aircraft to land with 30 minutes of fuel.

The flight in question landed with 40 minutes.

Qantas chief pilot Dick Tobiano said the pilots on the flight in question had done the right thing.

“Based on the pre-flight conditions, our pilots loaded fuel in accordance with CASA requirements and Qantas’ fuel policy,” captain Tobiano said.

“On approach to Perth, air traffic control requested the aircraft hold for longer than our pilots had previously been advised, and that to be given priority to land our pilots needed to make a fuel mayday call.

“The aircraft landed with 40 minutes of fuel in the tank, which is well above the minimum requirements.

“Our pilots followed the correct procedures and there was no safety issue with the flight.”

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau said it was investigating the incident and will release a final report upon completion.

“However, should a critical safety issue be identified during the course of the investigation, the ATSB will immediately notify relevant parties so appropriate safety action can be taken,” the ATSB said.