The New Zealand Fire Service reported that a Boeing passenger plane landed safely at an airport on Monday after a fire caused one of its engines to stop functioning. The aircraft, a Boeing 737-800 belonging to Virgin Australia, was en route to Melbourne, Australia, and diverted to Invercargill, New Zealand, due to the fire.
Lyn Croson, a supervisor with the New Zealand Fire and Emergency Service, stated that fire trucks met the plane upon its arrival in Invercargill approximately 50 minutes after taking off from Queenstown. Katherine Nind, a spokesperson for Queenstown Airport, mentioned that the cause of the engine fire and the number of passengers on board are still unknown.
Virgin Australia stated in an email that the incident might have been due to a "possible bird strike." Queenstown, with a population of 53,000, is a popular tourist destination in New Zealand's South Island, renowned for skiing, adventure tourism, and alpine scenery.
A few days earlier, a Boeing 777 operated by Air Canada returned to the airport shortly after takeoff due to an engine fire. Air Canada stated in a press release that flames emerged from the aircraft, which experienced an "unspecified engine issue" shortly after takeoff with 389 passengers on board. The plane quickly turned around and made an emergency landing at Toronto Airport, where it was met by firefighting crews.
