July 25, 2008 - The National Transportation Safety Board will be sending a team of investigators to the Philippines to assist in the investigation of today's accident in which a Qantas B747 made an emergency landing after the flight crew reportedly heard a loud bang and the airplane experienced depressurization while in flight.
The airplane, Qantas flight 30, a B747-400, en route to Melbourne, Australia from Hong Kong, landed safely in Manila at 11:15 am local time. There were no reported injuries among the 346 passengers and 19 crewmembers. The aircraft has a 5 foot hole in the cargo area forward of the right wing leading edge and there is also some wing damage.
NTSB Chairman Mark V. Rosenker has designated senior air investigator Joe Sedor as the U.S. Accredited Representative, and he will be accompanied by a technical specialist in the area of airworthiness. The U.S. team will also include technical advisors from the FAA and Boeing.
