“The plane that we were on was old and had sticky tape holding up the emergency exit sign…”

These were the comments of a 1Time passenger regarding 1Time flight T6 653, which made an emergency landing shortly after take-off at King Shaka Airport on Sunday evening. According to airport authorities, the incident left debris on the runway, and flights across all carriers – domestic and international – were delayed for up to four hours.

Sunday’s emergency landing was a result of “a noteworthy noise” that “indicated damage to the engine” on a 1Time flight that had just left Durban’s King Shaka Airport on its way to Cape Town.

Not long after the emergency landing was executed, a 2oceansviber sent us the following comment:

Hi

It was very interesting reading your article.

I was on 1Time’s 17h00 flight from Durban to Cape Town last night. We too had what sounded like an explosion or loud bang on the flight. It seemed underneath us where the wings and wheels are.

This happened round about the time the wheels went up. We were told that an engine had blown and so we had to go back to King Shaka for an emergency landing.

The plane that we were on was old and had sticky tape holding up the emergency exit sign.

Please let me know if you find out anything.

Pardon?

The plane that we were on was old and had sticky tape holding up the emergency exit sign.

Not ideal. Especially when the word “explosion” has been tied to a 1Time Airlines flight twice in seven weeks.

In fact, the last two years have been fairly frought for the budget domestic carrier.

In 2010, 750 parrots worth R2 million perished on a 1Time flight.

Last year, a similar emergency landing was achieved by a 1Time flight, and reports indicate that passengers managed to stay calmer than flight attendants, who did little to prevent the injury of 11 passengers.

In fact, people would apparently rather call in bomb scares than let their children fly 1Time.

2oceansvibe received the following statement from 1Time yesterday regarding the latest failure involving the airline.

1time flight takes precautionary measures

With regards to the turn back of 1time flight from Durban to Cape Town yesterday afternoon, the airline has released the following statement.

“Flight T6 653 departed from King Shaka International Airport at 17:00 and headed towards Cape Town as scheduled. Upon take-off, all operations were normal. The Captain on board confirms that during climb at about 500 feet above ground level, a noteworthy noise was heard followed by a sudden jolt. A Mayday call was signalled by the First Officer as the quick confirmation test done to check thrust parameters indicated damage to the engine,” says Captain Wayne Jefferies, Director Flight Operations.

While there was no apparent reason for the damage to have been caused, both the Captain and First Officer followed procedures and deemed the incident as severe, and therefore made the decision to turn the aircraft around.

The cabin crew and passengers were notified that the aircraft would be returning to King Shaka International Airport. The Captain advised passengers that precautionary emergency procedures were in place upon landing, so that passengers would not feel alarmed by the sight of the response vehicles on the runway.

1time airline sincerely regrets any inconvenience that was caused for passengers aboard the flight, as well as those that were delayed at the Airport as a result.

“We wish to reiterate that safety is our airline’s first and foremost priority, and that we will never compromise our passengers or crews’ safety, and therefore every precaution was taken to return the aircraft safely to Durban,” says Jefferies.

The airline also stressed that this occurrence can and has happened to other airlines in the past.

You have to love that ironic summary sentence: “The airline also stressed that this occurrence can and has happened to other airlines in the past.”

Interestingly the Civil Aviation Authority’s spokesperson, Phindiwe Gwebu, said on Monday, before the statement was released, that: “preliminary investigations show that its left engine failed.”

It’s all a bit like a game of Russian roulette, really. When’s it going to be your number?