Passengers on a flight from Perth, Australia, to Hong Kong were treated to an emergency landing in Indonesia last night after their plane reportedly caught fire mid-air.
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At one stage in the flight Sirna said all the power in the cabin went off.
Sirna said the engine fire went out after several frightening minutes.
Cathay Pacific confirmed that CX170 which departed from Perth to Hong Kong at 23.55 pm on 24 September 2015 was diverted to Denpasar due to a No. 2 engine defect.
The plane was met by fire services upon arrival in Bali but was able to taxi to the gate normally, the airline says.
All 234 people on board were unharmed and the plane landed safely again in Johannesburg.
“There were a few people that were pretty shaken”. “The girl next to me started freaking out and crying”.
“Mid-flight, we heard a loud bang and the plane started to shake”, he told Perth Radio 6PR from Denpasar.
“No other flights were disrupted because the plane made a ideal landing, with no issues”, she said, adding the aircraft remained at Bali airport Friday where it was being repaired. “The airline is now investigating the incident”.
This flight from South Africa to Hong Kong was forced to make an emergency landing after birds were sucked into the engine shortly after take-off and damaging it. Mr Sirna, who will continue on to New York as planned with the rest of his group of six, took to Facebook to describe his ordeal.
A spokesman for the airline said: “There were reports that some passengers saw sparks and flames from outside the window”.
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The incident comes in the same week that the South China Sunday Morning Post reported pilots at Cathay Pacific had sent an extensive warning letter to the airline’s management, saying staff fatigue, inexperience and rostering practices was creating safety concerns.
