Passenger plane lands safely in New Zealand after fire shuts down an engine

Source: CNA

WELLINGTON: A passenger plane landed safely at a New Zealand airport on Monday (Jun 17) after a fire shut down one of its engines, the country's fire service said.

The Virgin Australia Boeing 737-800 jet bound for Melbourne, Australia, with 67 passengers and six crew members on board landed in the New Zealand city of Invercargill after the fire forced a diversion.

The incident may have resulted from "a possible bird strike", the airline's chief operations officer Stuart Aggs said in an emailed statement.

Flames were seen shortly after the plane took off from Queenstown Airport. No further information about what happened at the time of the incident was known, said Catherine Nind, an airport spokesperson.

"At this time, we are not aware of any physical injuries to guests or crew," Aggs said, adding that passengers on board the flight - VA148 - would be accommodated in Invercargill overnight and that new flights would be arranged for them.

Aggs also expressed Virgin Australia's thanks to Invercargill Airport staff, local Air New Zealand crew, the flight's cabin crew and emergency services for supporting the response to the incident.