An Air New Zealand flight from Christchurch was forced to make an emergency landing at Sydney Airport this morning after reportedly suffering a hydraulic failure while flying over the Tasman Sea.
Passengers were informed mid-flight via an in-cabin announcement that the aircraft would be making an emergency landing.
The plane touched down safely just before 9am and was immediately met by Sydney Airport Fire & Rescue crews, emergency teams and ground support vehicles.
After landing, the aircraft remained stationary on the tarmac for more than an hour as engineers and emergency personnel assessed the problem. It was later towed to a gate, where passengers were finally allowed to disembark.
An Air New Zealand spokesperson told Daily Mail: ‘NZ221 from Christchurch to Sydney reported a technical issue while in flight.Â
‘Emergency services met the aircraft on arrival as a precaution.Â
‘The aircraft landed safely, and our engineering team will now carry out inspections to ensure the aircraft is safe to return to service.’
One passenger said about 20 minutes before landing they were told there was an issue and that the plane would need to be towed once it touched down, with emergency crews waiting on the runway.Â
Air NZ flight makes emergency landing at Sydney Airport after mid-air hydraulic failure scare
Fire trucks swarm runway as Air New Zealand jet forced to make emergency landing in Sydney
One passenger said about 20 minutes before landing they were told there was an issue and that the plane would need to be towed once it touched down
‘It was a smooth landing though,’ they said.Â
‘No one on board was really stressed – everyone stayed pretty calm. I was just glad it happened close to landing and not earlier in the flight.’
Another passenger said it was confusing at first because no one knew exactly what was going on.Â
‘When we landed, we had to wait on the plane for about an hour.Â
‘There were fire trucks and flashing lights everywhere, which was a bit of an experience. It felt a little unsettling, but everyone stayed patient.Â
‘I just wanted to stand up and move around, but it was fine overall,’ they said.
A hydraulic failure occurs when the pressurised system controlling an aircraft’s landing gear, brakes and steering malfunctions.Â
While modern planes have backups, crews often declare an emergency as a precaution.Â
Share or comment on this article:
Air New Zealand passengers told to prepare for emergency landing in Sydney after mid-air failure