Qantas will forge ahead with plans to expand its fleet of turbo-prop Q400 Bombardier jets, despite repeated safety scares that prompting a European airline to retire the aircraft.
The latest in a series of safety concerns with the plane arose when a Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) pilot made an emergency landing at Copenhagen Airport on the weekend.
The 44 passengers and crew aboard the jet were not injured, but SAS said it would stop using the plane after repeated problems with landing gear.
"Confidence in the Q400 has diminished considerably and our customers are becoming increasingly doubtful about flying in this type of aircraft," SAS chief executive Mats Jansson said in a statement.
"The Dash 8 Q400 has given rise to repeated quality-related problems and we can now conclude that the aircraft does not match our passengers' requirements concerning punctuality and regularity."
Bombardier said it was disappointed with the decision and stood by the aircraft.
"Bombardier and the landing gear manufacturer, Goodrich, have completed a full review of the Q400 turboprop landing gear system and results have confirmed its safe design and operational integrity," a company statement said.
Qantas said it had a watching brief on safety issues but would not remove the plane from service.
"We are complying with CASA (Civil Aviation Safety Authority) directives," a Qantas spokeswoman said.
"Our aircraft are safe and compliant at this stage.
"We have no plans to remove the Q400s."
Only last month Qantas grounded its Bombardiers when two safety incidents involving the Q400 prompted an airworthiness directive from the Civil Aviation and Safety Authority (CASA) and Transport Canada.
The airline was given the all-clear to return the entire fleet to the skies the next day.
Then last week, Qantas announced it would spend $400 million on 12 new Q400s, with options for another 24, to expand its regional QantasLink network.
Commsec analyst Cassandra Meagher said the investment was driven by growth in revenue per seat on regional routes, with revenue seat factor now above 80% for QantasLink.
But Meagher was confident Qantas could escape its contract obligations if the model proved unviable.
"They'll have a contingency in there," Meagher said.
Comment was being sought from Qantas about the details of its agreement with Bombardier.
Virgin Blue Australia is also expanding its fleet of smaller planes but has opted for 20 Embraer 170 jets.
