Qantas Dash 8 returns to Sydney due to landing gear fault

A QantasLink Dash 8-400 Q400 turboprop aircraft returned to Sydney, Australia after suffering a problem with its landing gear mid-flight.

The incident occurred on 29 January 2023 when the De Havilland Canada DHC-8 of Qantas Airways subsidiary QantasLink was operating scheduled domestic passenger flight QF2104 from Sydney (SYD) to Coffs Harbor (CFS).

According to flight history found on Flightradar24.com, the plane took off from SYD Airport at 15:52 (UTC) but returned to the same airport approximately 50 minutes after departure.

This was due to a suspected landing gear problem discovered by the flight crew half an hour after the turboprop, registered VH-LQF, left Sydney. Following the airline’s procedures, the pilots circled the plane several times over the Tasman Sea with the aim of burning fuel before it could make a safe landing at SYD Airport.

At 16:53 the turboprop returned to the airport of departure for a safety inspection. No further incidents or injuries were reported.

A growing list of Qantas plane incidents in January 2023

Qantas aircraft have been involved in at least seven incidents since January 2023.

The most recent, which occurred on 24 January 2023, involved a Qantas Airbus A330 flight QF887 between Perth Airport (PER) and Adelaide International Airport (ADL). The plane returned to the airport of departure 45 minutes into the flight after the pilots discovered problems with the flight papers.

Another incident was recorded on January 22 when the airline’s Boeing 737 jet, operating flight QF102, returned to Sydney (SYD) as a precaution after pilots received a report of fumes in the cabin.

On January 20, the airline’s Boeing 717 aircraft experienced problems with its flaps and was forced to turn back to Melbourne Airport (MEL). The same day, another Qantas aircraft, a Boeing 737, departed Melbourne and was bound for Sydney on flight QF430, but was forced to circle back after the flight crew received an indication of a minor engine problem shortly after take off

The previous day, flight QF101, operated by another Boeing 737 aircraft, returned to Sydney after pilots received a warning about a possible mechanical problem. Meanwhile, on January 18, a Boeing 737 experienced a rare engine failure while on flight QF144, which meant the pilot had to land at Auckland (AKL) airport with one engine.