Qantas, Rolls-Royce settle over blast

Australian flag carrier Qantas on Wednesday said it had reached a $100 million settlement with engine maker Rolls-Royce over a mid-air blast that forced the grounding of its entire A380 fleet.

Australian flag carrier Qantas on Wednesday said it had reached a $100 million settlement with engine maker Rolls-Royce over a mid-air blast that forced the grounding of its entire A380 fleet.

HT Image

"Qantas has today reached an agreement with Rolls-Royce plc in relation to the QF32 incident," the carrier said in a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange.

"The full settlement of Aus$95 million ($100 million) will be recognised in the FY11 result."

It followed a Qantas A380 plane making an emergency landing in Singapore in November last year due to a mid-air engine explosion.

Qantas initially grounded all six of its Airbus superjumbos after the blast over Indonesia, which forced the plane to return to Singapore trailing smoke.