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AirAsia flight returns to Australia after mid-air scare

Monday, 16 October 2017 7:27 AM [ Last Update: Monday, 16 October 2017 7:29 AM ]

This file picture shows fire rescue personnel beside the starboard engine of an AirAsia Airbus A330, after the aircraft on flight D7207 made an emergency landing at the Brisbane International Airport. (By AFP)

An AirAsia flight from Australia to Indonesia was forced to turn back to Perth after losing cabin pressure, with passengers Monday recounting their terror as oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling.

Air Asia said the plane suffered a “technical issue,” with Australian media reporting that the aircraft had to quickly drop from 32,000 feet (9,753 meters) to 10,000 feet 25 minutes after take-off.

Video circulating online shows distressed passengers wearing oxygen masks, with an alarm blaring and AirAsia staff calling for people to assume the brace position.

“I picked up my phone and sent a text message to my family, just hoping that they would get it,” one tearful passenger named Leah told Channel Nine television. “It was horrible.”

Another holidaymaker said not knowing what was going on heightened fears.

“We didn’t know what was happening because all the voice recordings on the plane were in every language but English,” she said.

AirAsia apologized for the scare, blaming a “technical issue” without elaborating on the cause.

“The safety of passengers and crew is our priority,” the budget airline said in a statement. “AirAsia apologizes to passengers for any inconvenience caused.”

Several flights have been forced back to Australia in recent months, including an AirAsia Gold Coast to Kuala Lumpur service in July that the carrier said involved a suspected bird strike.

A Qantas flight en route to Dallas returned to Sydney in September after the wing flaps could not be retracted, while a Johannesburg-bound plane turned back to Sydney in the same week when a crack in the windscreen was discovered.

(Source: AFP)

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