A Qatar Airways Airbus A321 was undergoing routine maintenance in Doha early this morning when an in flight entertainment satellite antenna caught fire. The blaze ripped violently through both fuselage and cabin, requiring a battle from Doha Airport Fire Service. Current airline reports do not mention injury, however, it’s believed minor injuries were sustained by Qatar Airways staff during the fire. A source at the airport sent GodSaveThePoints.com photos from the scene.
The Who
Qatar Airways Airbus A321 with registration A7-AIB. The plane has recently operated flights between Moscow, Athens, Goa and Doha. It was parked at Doha Hamad International Airport.
The What
An on board entertainment satellite caught fire during routine maintenance. No passengers were involved, though reports indicate Qatar Airways employees may have sustained injuries during the blaze. Qatar has not officially confirmed these reports.
The When
The fire occurred 6:50AM Doha time, at a remote stand in Hamad International Airport. It’s evidently clear that this was powerful, fast moving blaze. No injuries are officially reported, but we expect this report to change over time based on first hand accounts. It’s unclear what caused the fire. Antenna fires on aircraft are very rare. No other flights were affected during the incident.
We’ll update this piece as the story develops.
So much for flame resistant materials that are supposed to prevent a fire from propagating. DC11 all over again. This would have been a crash involving loss of life in any stage of flight, especially in cruise.
WOW. That’s some very scary photos.