KUALA LUMPUR: The Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) will conduct an investigation into an AirAsia flight involved in an emergency landing on Wednesday, says Anthony Loke after he was briefed by CAAM.
“Any emergency landing will be investigated by our aviation authorities.
“I would rather not preempt anything, as the incident will be investigated according to procedures,” the Transport Minister told reporters after launching the new open payment system for the Rapid KL On-Demand here yesterday.
On Wednesday, an AirAsia flight bound for Shenzhen, China, had to turn back to the Kuala Lumpur International Airport Terminal 2 shortly after takeoff.
Selangor Fire and Rescue Department assistant director (operations) Ahmad Mukhlis Mukhtar reportedly said the department was alerted about the emergency landing at 10.37pm Wednesday and dispatched a Fire Rescue Tender with nine personnel to the scene.
Flight AK128, which departed at 9.59pm Wednesday, was carrying 171 passengers and crew and landed at 12.08am yesterday.
Meanwhile, Bernama reported that AirAsia confirmed that its Airbus A320-216 suffered an issue with its pneumatic ducting, rather than any fire.
In a statement, AirAsia clarified that one of the engines gave an abnormal indication.
“AirAsia confirms that there was no engine fire. Upon inspection, it was found that the indication was due to a damaged duct causing hot air to be released, requiring the aircraft to return to the bay for rectification.
“It is expected to return to service on March 31,” the statement said.
AirAsia also said the pilots followed established procedures for this indication and requested a priority landing to ensure the safety of all guests and crew on board.
In the same statement, AirAsia Aviation Group deputy group chief executive officer (airline operations) Datuk Capt Chester Voo said the flight crew took appropriate action after noticing the abnormal indication in one of the engines.
“Our pilots and cabin crew are highly trained to handle such situations, and the aircraft landed safely with no further incident after the appropriate procedures were conducted,” he said, while also thanking Malaysia Airports, the Airport Fire and Rescue Service team, and relevant safety authorities for their swift response.
“We also thank our guests on flight AK128 for their understanding and patience. We ensured that a replacement flight was promptly arranged to connect them.
“Safety is always our top priority, and AirAsia remains steadfast in upholding the highest safety standards,” Voo added.
Affected passengers were transferred to another aircraft which departed at 3.46am and landed in Shenzen at 7.51am yesterday.
