One of the wheels on a Link Airways passenger flight from Canberra to Newcastle fell off as the plane took off, according to a report by the official Australian Transport Safety Bureau. The fault was only spotted from air traffic control in Canberra.
The pilot of the Saab 340 with 19 passengers on board was alerted, and the plane then circled the airport before landing on its remaining wheels, but with fire crews on the tarmac in full emergency mode.
The missing wheel was one of a pair, so the remaining wheels took the weight.
"During take-off, the left inboard main landing gear wheel separated from the aircraft. Air traffic control notified the flight crew of the concern during initial climb," the industry regulator said in its report on the incident which happened on January 29.
IN NEWS TODAY:
When the pilot was made aware of what had happened to the undercarriage, the plane then climbed to a safe height and situation from the cockpit. "As the aircraft approached the limit of the Canberra Airport control area, the crew made the decision to return to the airport," the ATSB's Director of Transport Safety Stuart Macleod said.
"In coordination with ATC (air traffic control), they conducted a fly-by of the tower, which confirmed the left inboard main landing gear wheel was missing."
According to the report, the captain declared a "PAN" situation, usually defined in aviation as urgent but not life-threatening.
The safety watchdog praised the "effective communication and decision-making" between traffic control and pilot. This coordination had succeeded in "managing an unexpected aircraft malfunction," the ATSB's Stuart Macleod said.
"In combination, their actions maintained safety margins and resulted in a safe landing."
Canberra-based Link Airways was contacted for comment but hadn't responded at the time of writing.
It is the second serious incident involving a Link Airways passenger plane flying from Canberra.
In 2022, passengers on a flight were terrified when a strap on a propeller flew into the fuselage, smashing a hole in the cabin.
"We took off and there was a huge, loud bang, and stuff flew over the cabin, and everybody screamed," Carolyn Paisley-Dew, who was in 7A, five seats behind impact, said.
The strap from the propeller went through the casing and hit a woman in seat 2A, according to passengers immediately behind her. A passenger across the aisle from the impact said at the time that it "was as loud as a bomb going off".
The plane was in the air for ten minutes when the incident happened. Passengers were screaming before the plane could land with emergency services waiting on the runway.
In its investigation, the ATSB criticised the Swissport company which dealt with the on-the-tarmac handling of aircraft.
The bureau also indicated that having different companies at the airport - each with different roles - could cause problems. It said that it was easy to become "complacent" when there were "multiple risk controls in place and multiple responsible parties".
"It is critical that all involved parties have a complete understanding of their roles and responsibilities, and how they fit together to create a safe and functional operating environment."
The ATSB did not identify why the wheel in the latest emergency came off.
"ATSB examination of the landing gear and separated wheel - which was found on the airport after the incident - found the wheel separated due to bearing failure.
"Due to the degree of damage sustained by the bearing components, it was not possible to determine the cause of the bearing failure."
The ATSB said that Link had "as a result of the occurrence, conducted a fleet-wide inspection of main wheel assemblies and nose wheel assemblies, with no faults found.
"The operator has also implemented a proactive change to its wheel bearing maintenance schedule."
