Passengers applaud as pilots beat storm
16.10.2007
AS a violent electrical storm buffeted their Jetstar flight over Mackay on Friday night, Kim Ainslie grasped her daughter's hand and tried to assure the tearful 19-year-old everything would be okay.
In truth, she was just as scared as her daughter despite having flown hundreds of times in all manner of aircraft as a former member of the Royal Australian Air Force.
Kim, 46, and Tiarna Ainslie, both of Andergrove, were among 149 passengers aboard flight JQ890 from Brisbane to Mackay which moments earlier was forced to abort, at the last moment, a landing attempt at Mackay airport after lightning struck the runway.
Passengers were then forced to endure a terrifying 25 minutes of uncertainty as the pilots repositioned the 177-seat Airbus A320 for a second landing attempt.
The plane finally landed around 7.30pm.
"It's the scariest ride I've ever had and I've had more than 300 flights all over the world," said Kim, a real estate agent with Ray White.
"When it took off again I did fear for my life.
"We were very, very scared and I'm sure 80% of the passengers on board were the same."
Kim said the passengers erupted into a round of applause when the plane landed safely.
"I believe there were definitely moments of danger," she said. "Thank you so much to the pilots."
Tiarna said the quick-thinking pilots could have saved their lives.
"When we were walking out I told the crew to tell the pilots they did an excellent job," she said.
Jetstar spokesperson Simon Westaway confirmed the plane missed an approach because of poor weather.
"We're a Qantas group airline and we adhere to the most stringent safety standards," he said.