An Airbus A380 packed from Melbourne to Vietnam suddenly lost altitude and was forced to turn around after encountering a technical problem.
VietJet flight VJ82 bound for Ho Chi Minh City left Melbourne Airport at 3am on Thursday and was approaching the South Australia-Northern Territory border when it made a U-turn.
The plane’s altitude dropped slightly before it turned around and circled for about three hours over Bendigo, in central-western Victoria.
The Airbus A330 landed back in Melbourne at around 9:30am.
No emergency services were required.
The flight has been cancelled.
The Airbus was approaching the border between South Australia and the Northern Territory when it made a U-turn.
The plane’s altitude dropped slightly before it turned around and circled for about three hours over Bendigo, in central-west Victoria, on Thursday morning (pictured).