New Zealand plane engine fails

The airliner with 65 passengers and four crew members on board was forced into an emergency landing.

Travel Insurance News - 29/12/2008

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Mount Cook Airlines was operating the twin-turboprop ATR 72-500 for parent company Air New Zealand, on a route to Christchurch on New Zealand’s south island, when it was forced to return to the Wellington Airport. Less than a minute after the plane had taken off a loud noise was heard coming from the plane’s right engine, and it returned to make an emergency landing at Wellington.

Passengers said that immediately after the ‘bang’ was heard, the plane’s cabin began to fill with smoke that came in through the air conditioning system.

"The engine on the right-hand side stopped. A lady there said she saw something hit it," said Matt Richens, a passenger on board the flight. He added: "All conversations stopped. There was a general sense of panic."

Another passenger, Anne Swart, said the delay in hearing from the crew about what had happened caused her to think the worst. She said. "They did tell us that everything would be okay ... but for ages they didn't tell us [what was happening]."

An Air New Zealand spokesman, Tracy Mills, reported that when the pilot saw the engine warning indicator, he shut down one engine. Engineers are examining the plane to determine the cause of the incident, she said.

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