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Was this the worst Qantas flight ever? Passengers find themselves stranded without food or water…and your flight could be next
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Qantas was forced to apologize again to its customers after another plane was left stranded on the tarmac for several hours.
Passengers on Boeing 737 flight QF596 were left stranded at Gold Coast Airport without food or water after landing from Sydney at 8.30pm on Tuesday evening.
Travel-weary customers were informed that the plane had been grounded after the nose gear steering was affected by a fault in the plane’s hydraulic system.
One passenger claimed staff were “running out of water” to serve customers. Instead, flight attendants handed out glasses of white and red wine to soften the blow.
Up to 120 passengers were waiting for firefighters and specialist engineers to assess the problem before the plane had to be manually towed to the terminal.
One customer claimed to have waited five hours on the tarmac. However, a Qantas spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia the delay was three hours.
“Our Sydney-Gold Coast flight on Monday evening was towed from the runway to the gate due to an issue with the aircraft’s nose wheel steering,” they said.
“We apologize for the inconvenience caused and would like to thank our customers for their patience while we organized the manual towing of the aircraft.”
Passengers on Boeing 737 flight QF596 were left stranded at Gold Coast Airport without food or water after landing from Sydney at 8.30pm on Tuesday evening.
Travel-weary customers were told the plane had been grounded after its steering was affected by a fault in the plane’s hydraulic system.
The major delay affected nine additional flights, seven of which were diverted to Brisbane.
Two flights from Gold Coast Airport were cancelled, while two other planes were diverted to land at Coolangatta on Tuesday evening.
A Qantas spokesperson apologized for the inconvenience caused to customers.
“We apologize for the inconvenience caused and would like to thank our customers for their patience while we organized the manual towing of the aircraft,” they said.
It comes just days after the embattled airline was forced to apologize to passengers on Boeing 737 flight QF93 from Melbourne to Los Angeles after waiting six hours on the tarmac before their flight was ultimately canceled.
The international flight was canceled at 3am on Tuesday after the plane was deemed too heavy to take off due to high winds.
The doomed flight had already been delayed before customers boarded.
Qantas customer Caitley had already traveled five hours from regional New South Wales and only arrived at her hotel for a well-deserved rest at 6am.
“We just wanted to get down. We were tired, there was no water, we weren’t even offered food, we weren’t allowed to get up from our seats,” she told 3AW radio.
Caitley said passengers were becoming more frustrated with each hour spent on the tarmac.
It comes just days after Qantas was forced to apologize to passengers on Boeing 737 flight QF93 after waiting six hours on the tarmac before the flight was canceled.
The international flight from Melbourne to Los Angeles was canceled at 3am on Tuesday after it was decided the plane was too heavy to take off due to high winds.
She waited at the airport for another hour before finally taking a taxi to a hotel in the city, both paid for by Qantas.
“We didn’t go to bed until six in the morning,” she said.
“We left home at 11:30 yesterday morning, so it’s been a big trip to only cover 500 kilometers.”
Another passenger, Pip, criticized Qantas for “never taking center stage”.
“This is not their first rodeo, they had no contingency plan and they are never at the forefront,” she said.
A Qantas spokesperson once again apologized for the delay.
“The plane arrived late in Melbourne following a delayed departure from the UK due to weather conditions, then encountered further problems including runway works and bad weather, which impacted on takeoff,” the spokesperson said.
“Passengers were provided with refreshments on board, but further refreshments were not possible once the aircraft was preparing to take off.
“Qantas has provided accommodation and transport for customers overnight and they will board a new flight on Tuesday evening.”