Regional express (Rex) was flying from Albury to Sydney when one of the propellers came off and fell to the ground. Fortunately, the propeller did not hit the fuselage, otherwise it would be disastrous. Albury to Sydney is about 500 km and flight time is about an hour.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) is investigating the incident and has advised anyone who finds aircraft debris to not handle it but report it to authorities.
Regional Express is Australia’s largest independent regional airline and operates a fleet of more than 50 Saab 340 aircraft on 1500 weekly flights to 58 destinations throughout the country.
In a statement, the airline said, “Regional Express (Rex) flight ZL768 operating from Albury to Sydney on 17 March 2017 experienced an event associated with the aircraft’s right propeller assembly.
“The crew followed standard operating procedures and the aircraft landed normally and on-time at Sydney Airport.”
“The 16 passengers and 3 crew members were met by Rex staff upon arrival and did not require any further assistance.”
“Rex is investigating the cause of the incident, and the matter has been reported to the ATSB as well as the Civil Aviation Safety Authority CASA.”