An aerobridge has been rammed into a Qantas A380 superjumbo engine at Sydney Airport, delaying a long-haul flight to Johannesburg by almost a day for hundreds of passengers.
Photos and video of the incident show part of the footings of an aerobridge hit the top and bottom of one of the A380’s four engines, causing damage.
Qantas flight QF63 had been scheduled to depart Sydney for South Africa’s largest city at 9.30am on Saturday for a near 15-hour trip. The A380, which can accommodate about 485 passengers, was about three-quarters full.
Part of an aerobridge hit a Qantas A380’s engine at Sydney Airport on Saturday morning.Credit:
No one was injured in the incident at one of the international terminal’s gates ahead of the QF63 service. Passengers who had boarded the aircraft for the long-haul flight disembarked the A380 via its lower deck.
The scheduled QF63 service will be delayed 21 hours while the airline awaits the first available aircraft. Qantas’ website shows the flight is now due to depart Sydney at 6.45am on Sunday.
Qantas said in a statement that it was investigating how the aerobridge made contact with the aircraft engine on Saturday morning.
The Qantas A380’s engine was damaged in the incident on Saturday morning.Credit:
“The aircraft will be inspected by engineers in Sydney and repaired before returning to service,” the airline said.
“We know flight disruptions are frustrating, and we apologise to our customers for the impact to their travel.”
Passengers disrupted by the incident will be provided with overnight accommodation and transport in Sydney if they need it.
The incident comes a month after a Qantas 737-800 aircraft was damaged by an aerobridge at Brisbane Airport, shattering the jet’s front windscreen.
It was the second such incident at Brisbane Airport’s international terminal in as many months, after an Air New Zealand Boeing 777 aircraft struck an air bridge as it was being pushed back on May 22.
Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.