Qantas investigates overloaded flight
Qantas has launched an official investigation into how one of its planes was overloaded with freight on a flight from Sydney to Lord Howe Island.
The aircraft, a Dash-8 aircraft flown by QantasLink with 32 passengers on board, was over its allowable take-off weight and was only meant to carry 20 kilograms of freight. Staff discovered that the plane was over its maximum take-off weight by 160 kilograms.
The flying kangaroo confirmed its investigation of how the freight was “incorrectly loaded” onto the plane is ongoing.
“The flight operated normally and landed safely and without incident,” Qantas said, adding that the plane’s safety was not compromised.
A former head of safety at Emirates and an ex-manager of air-safety investigation at Qantas, Mick Quinn, said that overloading or incorrectly loading cargo in a plane can impact the plane’s centre of gravity and cause flight control difficulties.
“While aircraft are designed to have safety margins that will tolerate minor deviations in weight and balance, any deviation may produce a structural or aerodynamic risk,” he said.
“There have been some serious incidents over the years involving incorrect weight and balance. It’s an issue that is reported on annually in industry accident summaries and is constantly monitored and addressed.”
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) said it was notified of a “potential aircraft loading incident” involving a Dash-8 passenger.
“The ATSB is currently gathering further information to inform a decision on any investigation,” a spokesman said.
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) said it knew about the incident as it had been “reported through the appropriate safety channels.”
Qantas has recently copped backlash for illegally outsourcing baggage handling jobs to Dnata, a Dubai based airport services company, in 2020. However, QantasLink’s handling is run by its in-house ground services.
The baggage handling controversies featured heavily in a recent Four Corners episode that focused on the airline and its recent mishaps.
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