Smoke was reportedly detected in the cabin 10 minutes after take-off from Doha
Qatar officials launched an investigation on Sunday after a Qatar Airways flight from Doha to London was forced to return to the airport and make an emergency landing after a fire was detected in the cabin, it was reported.
Passengers told the Doha News website a burning smell was detected about ten minutes after the Airbus 330 aircraft had taken off from Doha International Airport at around 12:30 on Sunday afternoon.
“There was a very very very strong smell of burning... Then the cabin crew ran very fast up the aisle touching every luggage cabin above our heads to feel if there was any heat, and they had fire extinguishers in their hands,” passenger Philippine de Croutte was quoted as saying by Doha News.
“The middle of the plane was starting to fill with smoke and the smell,” fellow passenger Katya Chong said, adding that cabin crew also donned smoke hoods and instructed passengers seated at the emergency exits about how to operate the emergency doors.
The captain then informed the passengers the aircraft would be returning to Doha to make an emergency landing. The aircraft was met by fire trucks and personnel when it landed in Doha.
The Gulf carrier tweeted passengers apologising for “the technical delay” and said all those booked on the flight “have been moved to a new aircraft.”
A Qatar Airways representative was not immediately available for comment when contacted by Arabian Business.
For all the latest transport news from the UAE and Gulf countries, follow us on Twitter and Linkedin, like us on Facebook and subscribe to our YouTube page, which is updated daily.I note that the cabin crew donned smoke hoods, did the passengers just hold their breath ?
I think a key factor here is how well mantained the aircraft are and how well trained the crew are in this case the crew seems to have been Well Trained , unfortunately some of the airlines in line with their expansion are recruiting staff left right and centre while looking at the costs involved without looking at the training and even the fact whether the crew are able to speak in proper English.....I hink Local Civil aviation authorities need to be more involved
From what the passenger said, looks like the cabin crew did an excellent job and shows us all how well they were trained and how professional they were in carrying out their duty.
Well done to the crew for keeping calm and ensuring passengers seated at emergency exists were re-briefed. Well done Qatar Airways for a job well done.
The cabin crew donned smoke masks as they were running TOWARD the fire while moving passengers away. Well done to the Qatar Airways cabin and flight deck crews.
Hat off to the CEO and his team !!! That is what u call Team Work !!! Keep the QA Flags flying !! V r proud of u !!!
Kayzed - that was the first thing that came to my mind when I read this......
The problem nowadays, not only with Qatar Airways, is that their route/ flight expansions require a heavy utilisation of their fleets leading to shorter turn around times, this in turn leads to flippant checking/maintenance of the smaller details such as wearing out wiring insulation etc. and this can also lead to such events....there are many reported events involving smoke/burning smells in different parts of the aircraft from all over the world.
in emergencies they should be able to execute the things they were taught at their training and use commonsense rather than looking at what they speak
