Forgotten propeller strap leaves three people injured

A forgotten propeller strap on a Link Airways’ flight has resulted in three people being injured and the aircraft badly damaged.

A passenger on a flight operated by Virgin Australia partner Link Airways has described the mayhem that erupted when a forgotten propeller strap penetrated the fuselage of their aircraft as it took off from Canberra.

Ashleigh Atkinson was in row six of the flight to Sydney and said just as the Saab 340 was about to take off, a woman screamed, and the front row was showered with debris.

“It was a massive explosion and my husband could see there was a hole in the plane,” Ms Atkinson said.

“The flight attendant was trying to calm the woman down and saying ‘we need to wait until we’re at 1000 feet to tell the pilot’.”

A passenger on board a Link Airways flight from Canberra on Thursday took pictures of the incident, which resulted in a ratchet strap penetrating the cabin fuselage.

Ms Atkinson said the woman was hit in the face by the debris and another was hit in the leg, while a flight attendant was also struck.

“When we got off the plane there was no support, nothing,” she said.

“Then I saw Virgin Australia’s (media) statement saying everything was fine. We all felt gaslit by that.”

It’s understood a ratchet strap used to secure a propeller on a Link Airways’ Saab 340 aircraft overnight was not removed before the 8.05am flight to Sydney.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau said when the propellers started turning, the strap struck the fuselage of the aircraft.

The Link Airways’ aircraft returned to Canberra Airport after a ratchet strap penetrated the fuselage, showering passengers with debris.

ATSB chief commissioner Angus Mitchell said they considered the incident to be serious.

“It is concerning that a passenger carrying aircraft did depart with what we understand at this stage to be the ratchet strap not removed from one of the propellers and that has subsequently come off in flight and made a penetration to some degree into the fuselage,” Commissioner Mitchell said.

“That is of particular concern to us, and something we will seek to understand what were the contributing factors, why wasn’t it picked up.” 

Flight radar images showed the aircraft in question registered VH-VEQ taking off from Canberra, then returning within 14-minutes to the airport.

Flightradar image of the Link Airways flight in question. Picture: Flightradar24

The three people injured were assessed for minor injuries at the scene, attended by the Australian Federal Police.

An AFP spokeswoman said the matter was referred to the ATSB to investigate.

Canberra Airport chief executive Stephen Byron said they had spoken to one of the injured passengers to check on her wellbeing.

“We are aware of an incident this morning involving a Link Airways aircraft,” Mr Byron said.

“All of the appropriate aviation agencies have been contacted and Link Airways are co-operating with the investigation.”

Virgin Australia denied anyone was injured and said “all passengers had disembarked safely”.

“Virgin Australia can confirm that flight VA633 operated by Link Airways on behalf of Virgin Australia from Canberra to Sydney on Thursday, November 10 was involved in an incident near Canberra airport,” said a Virgin Australia spokeswoman.

“After becoming aware of the incident, the crew took steps in accordance with standard operating procedures to prioritise the safety of all guests and crew on board and conducted an air return in line with safety protocols.”

The ATSB investigation would also gather evidence from flight crew and passengers, with a final report to be published in due course.

Link Airways teamed up with Virgin Australia late last year, flying up to nine Canberra-Sydney services a day for the larger airline.

Under the deal, Link passengers are also eligible for Velocity frequent flyer points and in some cases can use Virgin Australia’s lounge facilities in Sydney.

Saab 340s seat 34 passengers in a 1-2 configuration and have long been used on regional routes in Australia with very few issues.