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Show DAILY aturday, July 26, 2008 HERALD AS expert at Jane's Aviation, told where the atmosphere is still investigator and three engithin but breathable. neers," who were leaving imThe Manila airport authorContinued from Al mediately, she said. the aircraft experienced rapid ity, quoting pilot John Francis The probe into the window. Loud applause and reaircraft was likely to be Bartels, said the plane suffered decompression," he said. While it is not uncommon eved laughter went up as the an "explosive decompression." lengthy, Verdier said, and the lane touched down. for metal panels to be lost from "One hour into the flight Boeing team expects to interaircraft in flight, he said: "It's There were no injuries, and there was a big bang, then the view the crew and examine the structure of the plane, among relatively rare that when a bit nly a few cases of nausea, plane started going down," falls off the airplane it causes irline officials said. An offi-ipassenger Marina Scaffidi, 39, other things. of the U.S. Transportation the sort of instance that we from Melbourne, told The AsFriday's incident carried sociated Press by phone from saw in relation to Qantas. In some echoes of a 1988 case in lecurity Administration said the airport. "There was wind litial reports indicated no link other words that it causes the which a large section of an olda terrorism. aircraft cabin to depressurize." swirling around the plane and er Aloha Airlines jetliner was Yates said investigators will some condensation." The passengers and crew torn off over Hawaii because She said a hole extended examine closely the fracture of metal fatigue. Although the rrived in Melbourne on a from the cargo hold into the pilots were able to land, a flight plane Saturday morning points that showed up on the attendant died and many of the nd were greeted by hundreds skin of the aircraft to deterpassenger cabin. if relieved family members. After the pilots' initial rapid 89 passengers were seriously mine whether metal fatigue or descent, "the plane kept going injured. manufacturing defect caused Investigators appeared to Geoff Dixon, the chief executhe panel to peel away. down, not too fast, but ft was focusing on a structural The passengers, on a flight iroblem. descending," Scaffidi said, add- tive officer of Qantas, Ausfrom London to Melbourne, "From the pictures that ing that the staff informed pas- tralia's largest airline, praised had just been served a meal the pilots and the rest of the ve've seen out of Manila dur-n- g sengers they were diverting crew for how they the course of the day, it after a stopover in Hong Kong to Manila. TV screens on the vould seem that one of the when they described hearing a backs of seats allowed them to handled Friday's events. "This was a highly unusual loud bang, then their ears poptrack their route to the Philiplanels to the outer skin of he aircraft has literally come situation, and our crew ping as air rushed out the hole. pine capital. "No one was very hysteriiway from the rest of the fuse-age- The pilots put the plane into a Chris Yates, an aviation quick descent to 10,000 feet, cal," she said. Airplane The Associated Press. "As a consequence of this, al dif-ere- Sydney airport. responded with the profesIn September 1999, a Qantas sionalism that Qantas is known for," he said. Boeing 747400 with more than 400 people on board overshot a The passengers were taken to several hotels in Manila, runway in Bangkok, Thailand, then left just before midnight during bad weather. who Union engineers on another plane to Melbourne. have held several strikes this Qantas boasts a strong year to demand pay raises safety record and has never lost a jet to an accident, alsay that safety is being comof were there crashes promised by low wages and though smaller planes, the last in 1951. overtime work. As of December 2007, QanSince then, there have been no accident related deaths on any tas was operating 216 aircraft Qantas jets. flying to 140 destinations in However, the airline has had 37 countries, though in recent months it has announced it will a few scares in recent years. In February 2O08, a Qantas retire some aircraft and cancel as well as cut717 with 84 passengers on some routes board sustained substantial ting 1,500 jobs worldwide due to skyrocketing fuel prices. damage in a heavy landing in Darwin, Australia. And the year before, Qantas acI Associated Press writers knowledged that an unlicensed Lily Hindy in New York, Oliver Teves and Teresa Cerojano mechanical engineer had conducted safety checks on more in Manila, and Tanalee than 1,000 international flights Smith in Sydney, Australia, over a contributed to this report. period at ," June Kane of Melbourne agreed, telling Australia's ABC radio: "It was absolutely terrifying, but I have to say, everyone was very calm." Amazingly calm, in fact. Video footage showed people looking almost as if nothing was wrong as they glanced from side to side, their nearly untouched meals still in front of them. The cabin crew continued to work, smiling as they walked down the aisles to reassure nervous passengers. After the plane touched down safely amid applause, one of the pilots could be heard saying over the intercom: "Fire vehicles and emergency vehicles are going to take a look at us." What they found was a stunhole ning sight. A gaped at the joint where the front of the right wing attaches to the plane. Luggage from the cargo hold strained against the webbing used to keep it from shifting during a flight. A curved line of rivets was still visible on the plane's body at the front edge where the missing sheet once was; a straight line of rivets was along the other. Boeing spokeswoman Liz Verdier said it was too soon to determine what caused the hole, but the company was -n providing technical assistance A. as part of an investigation led EDWIN LLOBRERANinoy Aquino Internationa! Airport by the National Transportation hole gapes in the right-sid- e fuselage near the wing of a Qantas Safety Board. 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