Air safety investigators are probing an incident over Western Australia after pilots on a Qantas plane were forced to declare a mayday amid fears it did not have enough fuel.
Qantas flight 933 from Brisbane was approaching Perth on Monday night when it was placed in a holding pattern due to delays at Perth Airport.
The delays would have meant the Boeing 737 would not have enough fuel reserves on landing.
Pilots were told they would have to declare a mayday in order to be given priority clearance to land at Perth Airport.
The aircraft landed without incident a short time later.
Qantas says the plane ended up landing with 40 minutes worth of fuel in the tank, well above the minimum requirements.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has confirmed it is investigating a ‘low-fuel incident’.
“During descent, the crew declared an emergency due to the amount of fuel on board and proceeded to land at Perth. The aircraft landed with reserves intact,” the ATSB said in a statement.
“A final report will be released at the conclusion of the investigation. However, should a critical safety issue be identified during the course of the investigation, the ATSB will immediately notify relevant parties so appropriate safety action can be taken.”
