Qantas flight set for Melbourne forced to return to Mildura shortly after departure due to technical issue
Flight QF2079/QLK79D, which is operated by a Dash 8 Q400 aircraft, was headed for Melbourne from Mildura in Victoria's northwest on Tuesday, but shortly after take-off it had toturn back due to a technical issue.
Victoria Police said it was called to Mildura Airport "following reports of an aircraft incident just after 11am, where it appears there was an issue with the aircraft".
Crews from Fire Rescue Victoria and Ambulance Victoria joined police on the scene for the landing, which is procedure for priority landings.
The pilot landed the plane successfully about 12pm without injury to anyone on board.
Qantas did not confirm what the technical issue was, but sources told the Herald Sun the plane had "lost hydraulics on its wing flaps".
A number of circuits had to be made mid-air so the plane could dump fuel before the landing was attempted.
The airline said it was a "priority landing" rather than an "emergency landing" and acknowledged it would have been an "unsettling" experience for passengers.
'One of our aircraft had to return to Mildura shortly after take-off on Tuesday due to a technical issue," a Qantas spokesperson told SkyNews.com.au.
'Our pilots are highly trained to handle situations like this, and the flight has since landed safely in Mildura.
'We appreciate this would have been an unsettling experience for customers and thank them for their understanding."
The aircraft taxied to the gate under its own power and passengers safely disembarked from plane.
Before the aircraft returns to service, it will be inspected by Qantas engineers, while the airline's customer service team is working to get the passengers back on their way to the Victorian capital.
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