There was an engine fire on flight SJ271 flying from Dili (Timor-Leste) to Denpasar (Indonesia) on 15/12. The fire occurred minutes after taking off from Dili.
My friend, who was on the flight, reports that two loud bangs came from the right hand side of the aircraft just after takeoff, after which there were bursts of orange flames coming from the right engine. Some passengers alerted the flight attendants, who immediately panicked and, without asking any further questions, went onto the announcement system, yelling “FIRE! FIRE! FIRE!”. Panic followed, and passengers were told by the flight attendants to put on their life jackets. Flight attendants told the passengers that the plane was going back to Dili, but 15 min after the plane was still going towards Denpasar. During that time no announcements were made. After a while flight attendants told passengers everything was "normal" and the plane continued to Denpasar.
Sriwijaya gave no formal explanation to the passengers. When they disembarked the captain was standing near the door, and he just nodded when passengers tried to talk to him.
This incident raises a few questions:
- Is it standard procedure to go to the nearest airport (DIL in this case) after an engine fire, or can it be safer to continue the flight?
- Are we correct in saying the response from the flights attendants was totally inappropriate? If anything they should keep the passengers calm, not freak out themselves.
- Are captains encouraged to explain to passengers what happens when technical problems occur?
- How can one find out more about what happened during this flight?
FR24 shows the plane ascending in stages, and speed decreasing slightly in the beginning of the flight: https://www.flightradar24.com/data/airc ... e#1ee01431
After landing the plane stayed at DPS for more than 24 hours.
