The Australian media is questioning safety after two Qantas jets were forced to turn back on Friday following two other incidents this week.
Today’s incidents involved a Boeing 717 with a flap issue and a 737 with a minor engine issue and both returned to Melbourne.
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Qantas suffers about 60 turnbacks a year while it operates over 300,000 flights a year.
The global industry has about 10,000 turnbacks a year but operates over 43 million flights a year.
The Qantas Group has well over 300 aircraft in daily operation.
Earlier this month this website voted Qantas, the World’s Safest Airline for 2023.
Qantas Domestic Chief Executive Andrew David said in a statement that “It’s important to put these things in context. Across aviation, there are diversions and air turnbacks happening every day for a range of reasons. They usually reflect an abundance of caution and that’s why flying is such a safe way to travel.
“When they happen at Qantas, we’re proud of how well our people deal with them, and that comes back to our safety record and our commitment to training.
“We understand that when you hear reports of planes turning around, it’s concerning. But people can be assured that aviation is built on safeguards, and one of those safeguards is that if something isn’t right, we take a conservative approach to the problem rather than pressing on.”
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