SINGAPORE: Singapore Airlines Plane With 284 On Board Hits Aerobridge At Changi Airport

Singapore Airlines (SIA) plane carrying 272 passengers along with 12 crew members struck an aerobridge at Changi Airport on Tuesday (Sep 18). Singapore Airlines flight SQ178 was scheduled to depart Singapore for Ho Chi Minh City at 09:45 Local Time.

Flight was delayed after the forward fuselage of the Airbus A330-300 struck the rear aerobridge during push-back at Changi Airport.

All passengers and crew members disembarked normally via the forward aerobridge.

Arrangements were made for passengers to be accommodated on another aircraft to Ho Chi Minh City, the spokesperson said.

The damage to the aircraft is currently being assessed and investigations will be carried out to determine the cause of incident occurred.

Several in-flight announcements were made to inform passengers of the situation. After the passengers disembarked, they were escorted to another gate and provided with refreshments.

As a result of the delay, the flight departed Singapore at 12:00 Local Time and arrived in Ho Chi Minh City at about 12:45 Local Time – 01:55 minutes behind schedule.

Statement issued on Wednesday, Changi Airport Group (CAG) spokesman Ivan Tan said that the aerobridge was slightly damaged in the incident, but has since been repaired. CAG will work with the relevant parties on the investigations.

It also said that ground personnel provided assistance to the affected passengers.

CAG will work with the relevant parties on the investigations, it added.

Tuesday’s incident was the latest in a string of woes for Singapore’s national carrier.

This is not the first time a plane has been damaged on the ground at Changi Airport.

In November last year, a tow tug caught fire as it was pulling an SIA Boeing 777-200 to a departure gate.

The aircraft was crossing the bridge above Airport Boulevard Road when the tow tug caught fire. There were no passengers aboard the aircraft at the time but the fire damaged the plane, which had to be grounded for repairs.


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AUSTRALIA: Singapore Airlines Pilot Fails Alcohol Test, Flight From Melbourne To Wellington Cancelled

Singapore Airlines (SIA) flight from Melbourne(MEL) to Wellington(WLG) was cancelled on Saturday morning (Sep 15) after the pilot failed an alcohol test.

Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority had conducted a random drug and alcohol test on all crew members before the flight, and the pilot didn’t pass the test due to having higher than suitable blood alcohol limit, said an SIA spokesperson.

The pilot in question has been suspended from all operations until an investigation is undertaken, SIA said.

Flight SQ247 was scheduled to depart Melbourne at 07:00 Local Time on Saturday and arrive in Wellington at 12.20 Local Time. And the return flight SQ248 on Saturday was also cancelled, said SIA.

Passengers affected due to flight cancellation took to social media to express their frustrations, saying that they had no information for several hours about alternative arrangements such as booking a new flight.

We sincerely apologize to those affected by the cancellation of these flights. However, the safety of our customers and crew is our highest priority, said the SIA spokesperson.

We are currently working with those customers whose travel has been inconvenienced to find suitable alternate travel arrangements as soon as possible, SIA added.


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