Qantas plane left stuck on the runway for two hours after a catering truck broke down in front of it

Passengers were stranded when a Qantas flight was delayed for hours on Tuesday after it got stuck behind a broken-down lorry at Perth Airport.

Flight QF938 to Brisbane was scheduled to depart just after 1:00 PM WA time, but the aircraft was unable to move because the catering truck blocked the path.

It wasn’t until 1:20 p.m. that the crew realized the truck was unusable and not about to move any time soon. That said a spokesman for Perth Airport.

The passengers were taken off the plane for some time while catering company Dnata made arrangements for their truck to be towed away.

Passenger Nick McRae said he would be allowed back on board around 3 p.m.

Flight QF938 to Brisbane was scheduled to depart just after 1pm (WA time) but the place was unable to move as the catering truck blocked the path. Perth Airport is pictured

“Apparently no one can find a drag chain or a leash,” he said.

The flight finally departed for Brisbane just after 3pm, more than two hours after its scheduled departure. Now Perth reported.

Arrival was scheduled for 9.16pm Queensland time.

Two weeks ago, Qantas posted an interim underlying pre-tax profit of $1.43 billion in its first return to profitability since the coronavirus pandemic brought travel to a halt in 2020.

Statutory net profit for the six months ended June 30 was $1 billion, compared to a net loss of $456 million a year earlier.

The profit turnaround was achieved despite a 65 percent increase in fuel costs during the half year.

Qantas said domestic flight levels averaged 94 percent of pre-pandemic levels, while international capacity also doubled to 60 percent.