Qantas flight blows up Perth Airport runway after recent resurfacing works

Perth Airport is investigating why a recently resurfaced part of its main runway appeared to disintegrate as a Qantas flight prepared for takeoff.

A Qantas A330 like the one involved in an incident that damaged the Perth Airport runway. Picture: AFP

Perth Airport is investigating why a recently resurfaced part of its main runway appeared to disintegrate as a Qantas A330 accelerated for takeoff.

Video taken by a planespotter shows a thick cloud of dark dust billowing out behind flight QF71, as it gathers speed a short distance along the runway just after midday on Sunday.

After a short full runway closure while the damage was inspected, it was reopened to operate some departing services.

An airport spokesman confirmed there was pavement damage as a result of the incident and urgent repairs had been carried out.

Crews worked through the afternoon and much of the night, with the repairs completed about 1am on Monday.

The runway was then declared fully operational.

The Qantas flight to Singapore took off without incident but another flight operated by a 747 freighter that was preparing to land at Perth Airport opted to divert to Adelaide because of the damage.

It is understood the section of runway affected had only recently been resurfaced as part of a major pavement renewal project at Perth Airport, that began on August 12.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau was waiting on more information about the incident before making a decision whether to investigate.

The unusual occurrence came months after Perth Airport experienced major disruption when air in its fuel pipeline meant aircraft could not refuel at the gateway for over 12 hours. Dozens of flights were cancelled and delayed as airlines scrambled to source fuel elsewhere.

Qantas and Perth Airport recently announced a landmark agreement to build a new terminal for the airline group, due to open in 2031.

In the interim, upgrades to terminals three and four would allow Qantas to add new destinations, including Johannesburg and Auckland, by mid-2025.

The works would also accommodate new Qantas A350-1000s due to start arriving in mid-2026.

The deal signed by Qantas boss Vanessa Hudson and Perth Airport chief executive Jason Waters allowed for the construction of a new parallel runway by 2028.

Urgent repair works are underway at Perth Airport after a Qantas A330 tore up part of the main runway when taking off on Sunday.

The airport confirmed the main runway was partly operational on Sunday afternoon after Qantas flight QF71 damaged the runway as it took off around… pic.twitter.com/kTU2OZR167

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