Mid-air terror for British passengers as Boeing 747 plunges 20,000ft after three-metres hole appears in its belly
Passengers vomited into oxygen masks, debris flew through the cabin and part of the ceiling collapsed when a three-metre hole torn in the belly of a Qantas Boeing 747 forced an emergency landing in Manila today.
The packed aircraft, which was carrying 346 passengers and 19 crew from London to Melbourne, was said to have plunged a terrifying 20,000 feet with a loss of cabin pressure shortly after leaving Hong Kong bound for Melbourne.
Passenger Dr June Kane, from Melbourne, said: "There was a terrific boom and bits of wood and debris just flew forward into first (class) and the oxygen masks dropped down.
The Qantas captain stares up at the damage on the wing of the 747 
Terror: Stills from a passenger video show the moment the oxygen masks dropped
"We were told that one of the rear doors had a hole blown into it, but I've since looked at the plane and there's a gaping hole in the side.
"On the left-hand side, just forward of the wing, there's a gaping hole from the wing to the underbody. It's about two metres by four metres and there's baggage hanging out, so you assume that there's a few bags that may have gone missing.
"It was absolutely terrifying, but I have to say everyone was very calm."
Speaking about their ordeal, several passengers said they had initially been told a door had popped open, however that was later being dismissed as unlikely while initial reports remained inconclusive as to what caused the damage.
The aircraft touched down safely at Manila at 11.15am local time and all passengers and crew were able to disembark safely.
"Upon disembarkation, there were some passengers who vomited," Manila airport operations officer Ding Lima told local radio. "You can see in their faces that they were really scared."
Captain John Francis Barters, the Australian pilot of the stricken flight, in Manila after his emergency landing
Baggage can clearly been seen dangling from the three-metre gash in the 747's side
"None of us realised how lucky we were until we got off the plane here and saw the size of the hole," Mr Phil Rescall, from London, said after the dramatic landing.
"We just stood and stared in amazement at the hole. We knew then that we had been very lucky to have landed safely.
"As we were descending it was a very touchy situation for all of us - we just didn't know what had caused the pressure inside the plane to drop and the oxygen masks to drop down.
"Some of the passengers were crying, which is very understandable. It wasn't something you want to go through again. A lot of people were very shaken when they saw that hole."
Another English passenger, 42-year-old Mr Robin McGeechan, from the Midlands, heard a loud bang after the aircraft had taken off from its Hong Kong stopover.
"Incredibly there wasn't much panic on board, but obviously a lot of people were pretty scared," said Mr McGeechan.
"We were told by the crew that a door had popped but that obviously wasn't the case.
Charlie Wilson (L), and Marina Scaffidi kiss in relief as they disembark from the terrifying flight
Oliver Furniss, left, and Marina Scaffidi exchange high fives while another passenger takes a reassuring drag on a cigarette after disembarking safely from the aircraft
"We only realised what the true situation was when we saw the great big hole after the plane landed."
Another passenger, Miss Sarah Lucas, was flying with her 19-year-old sister Olivia from London to Melbourne, sitting in the business class section, when they heard a loud bang.
"We thought one of the doors had become open because there was a lot of papers rushing through the cabin - it felt like a gush of wind.
"The plane began to fall quite quickly and then it levelled out. I would say we lost pressure for about five minutes before the situation was stabilised.
"I didn't realise how bad it was until we got down and I saw the damage in the side.
"The pilot made announcements to the flight crew while it was all going on but none of the passengers were told what was happening. We just didn't know what was going on and most people just had to sit there. Most people were quiet, not saying anything, just quiet."
Peter Gibson, from Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority, told ABC Radio that initial reports indicated a problem with air pressure in the cabin.
The gash can clearly be seen in the side of the massive Boeing 747
He said: "The pilot has some pressurisation warnings about a door on the left-hand side of the aircraft, but exactly what went wrong is still being determined."
Brendan McClements, chief executive of the Victorian Major Events Company, said: "We were flying out of Hong Kong, heard a very loud noise, a bang.
"There was a sort of rapid expulsion of wind. It went out of the plane, the air got sucked out, the oxygen masks dropped down and we put them on.
"Where I was sitting wasn't ideal, by no means ideal. But actually it was very well handled by the Qantas staff - that is the thing that stood out to me. They did a very good job of keeping everyone calm, keeping it under control.
"After we landed, there was a very large hole that wasn't there when we took off in Hong Kong." Other passengers reported that a door "popped" during the flight.
Qantas chief executive Geoff Dixon said: "All 346 passengers and 19 crew disembarked normally and there were no reports of any injuries to passengers or crew."
He added that the flight crew performed emergency procedures after oxygen masks were deployed. Initial inspections revealed the aircraft sustained a hole in its fuselage, and it was being inspected by engineers.
Mr Dixon said: "The Australian Transportation Safety Bureau and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority have been notified of the incident and Qantas is sending its own engineers to Manila.
"Qantas has provided all passengers with accommodation and a replacement aircraft has been arranged."
One passenger said that the pilot did 'an amazing job' of controlling the aircraft.
Flight QF30, which left Hong Kong at 9:00am (01:00GMT), had been due to arrive in Melbourne at 9:45pm (11:45GMT), according to the Qantas website.
Source: Daily Mail UK, July 25, 2008 
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