Photo: Calvin Samuel / RNZ
Emergency services rushed to Auckland Airport after the pilot of an inbound Qantas flight issued a mayday call over the Tasman.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand said it had been alerted to an emergency at 11.05 on Friday morning, having received reports the flight from Sydney had a fire on board.
Sixteen fire trucks from the Auckland area responded to the incident .
Flying over from Australia, Annalise Harris said passengers were alerted to the situation about 30 minutes before landing.
"It was frightening, I thought that was it, I thought 'nah that's it'," she said.
"It was very rough, and I wouldn't jump on a plane again, that's what I'm thinking right now."
Harris said the ordeal had left her wary of the her flight back.
"I'm very concerned. I want to live here now."
Emergency services at Auckland International Airport. Photo: Calvin Samuel / RNZ
Geoff Tangitutu was also onboard and described the scene after landing in Auckland this morning.
"As soon as the plane landed, you look to your left there's a f****** firetruck, you look to your right, there's a fire truck, like everywhere" he said.
Tangitutu said despite what happened, it hadn't put him off flying.
"Nah, hell no, nah bro it was actually a little bit fun..."
In a statement, Qantas said pilots on Flight 141 were receiving "intermitent indication about potential fire in the cargo hold".
"The pilots followed standard procedures and notified authorities through a mayday call."
Ambulances were on standby near the tarmac as the Boeing 737 landed safely before midday and passengers disembarked.
"Preliminary investigations report that there was no fire in the front cargo hold," the airline said in its statement.
"Our engineers will inspect the aircraft to determine the cause."
The airfield was returning to normal about midday, but Auckland Airport warned there could be some slight delays for departing and arriving flights into the afternoon.
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