“Just arrived as we watched huge ploom [sic] of smoke come from the ATR. Everyone has safely evacuated.”
Michelle McJarrow wrote: “We are on NZ247. Stuck on runway also with engine issues. Techs investigating but runway shut.”
Flames flare from the engine of an Air New Zealand plane as it makes an emergency landing at Wellington Airport. Photo / Lauren Crawford-Flett
The aircraft landed with a trail of thick smoke billowing behind after its engine caught fire on approach to Wellington Airport this afternoon.
Fire and Emergency were advised of an ATR aircraft engine fire in Wellington. Passengers disembarked and assembled nearby on a grass verge.
Air New Zealand’s head of flight operations, Hugh Pearce, said just after 4pm this afternoon, flight NZ5366, travelling from Christchurch to Wellington, landed safely after smoke was seen coming from the engine.
“The aircraft was met by emergency services and all passengers have disembarked safely. The cause of the incident is not yet known. We expect some disruptions to flights in Wellington as a result.”
It is unclear how many passengers and crew were onboard the aircraft but Air NZ’s ATR72s have 68 seats.
He was relieved to be on the ground and safe, speaking to the Herald as he waited for his luggage in the arrivals terminal.
”One passenger did have a bit of a panic attack,” he said. However, most passengers were relatively calm.
Those sitting in the exit rows helped their fellow passengers out of the plane.
He understood the cause of the fire was a drop in oil pressure in the engine. He said the “crew chief” told him the reason as passengers were shuttled from the plane to the terminal.
The oil pressure had apparently dropped, then the engine dumped the oil and it made contact with hot parts of the engine and ignited, the man said.
Wellington Airport runway reopens after flights were earlier diverted
A number of flights arriving at Wellington Airport were diverted, including an international Air New Zealand flight from Sydney.
However, Wellington Airport told the Herald in a statement that the runway was now open so flights can operate normally.
“There may be some flow-on disruptions so passengers are advised to contact their airlines.”
Three flights arriving in Wellington appear to have been diverted, 14 have had their arrival time pushed back, and three have been cancelled outright.
Wellington Free Ambulance said crews attended the incident, treating two patients on scene, both in a minor condition, with no one needing hospital transfer.
A plane has had an emergency landing in Wellington this afternoon.
Photo / Romeo Wellington
Emergency services swarm the runway after an Air New Zealand plane made an emergency landing at Wellington Aiport this afternoon. Photo / Romeo Wellington
It comes after a June 17 drama when an aircraft made an emergency landing in Invercargill when flames were seen coming from its engine over Queenstown.
Members of the public reported seeing flames coming from an engine and heard loud bangs, as the Virgin Airlines VA148 flight to Melbourne ascended from the southern airport.
One witness who took footage of the incident wrote: “Sounded like it was coming apart over our house. One engine was throwing flames and sputtering out.”
