Emirates plane has emergency Australia landing

FORCED LANDING: Pilots on an Emirates plane reported problems during a flight from Perth to Dubai. (Getty Images)

An Emirates plane bound for Dubai was forced to make an emergency landing at Perth International Airport in Australia on Thursday.

The crew of the Airbus A340, Flight EK425, which had 120 passengers on board, called an in-flight emergency to air traffic control two hours after taking off on its way to Dubai.

Malcolm Bradshaw, general manager of corporate affairs at Perth International Airport, told newswire Bloomberg the plane landed safely at Perth and no injuries were reported.

A local radio station in Perth reported that smoke was seen escaping from the cabin but passengers have said they were unaware of any smoke inside the jet. Bradshaw declined to comment on the potential cause of the problems.

Passengers had quickly disembarked through the front exit, leaving hand luggage on board once the plane had landed, WA Today reported on their website.

Emergency services workers and several police officers then boarded the plane which has been parked away from the main terminal.

A spokesperson from Emirates told Arabian Business: "Passengers on Emirates flight EK425, which returned to Perth this morning after a burning smell was detected, are being rescheduled on an Emirates flight later today.

"The decision to return to Perth was a precautionary measure one and a half hours into the flight and allpassengers disembarked normally after the plane landed.

"Contrary to some media reports, there was no smoke in the cockpit or the cabin of the aircraft.

"Emirates reiterates that passenger safety is of paramount concern to the airline and the decision to return was a precautionary measure.

"As is usual in this type of situation, emergency services were activated as per standard procedure but were not required. Safety was not compromised at any point. Aircraft engineers are investigating the cause of the smell."

It was the second forced landing in successive days by UAE-based aircraft. An Etihad flight made an unscheduled landing in Pakistan on Wednesday after a bomb hoax note was discovered in an aircraft toilet.

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