Lightning Strikes Alliance Airlines Fokker F-100 During Storms Around Gladstone Last Thursday Night

Several lines of severe thunder storms passed through Central Queensland most afternoons last week, with one particularly bad storm with lots of lightening and thunder passing through Gladstone on Thursday 14 November.

Alliance Airlines Fokker F-100 VH-FWI was enroute to Gladstone from Brisbane operating as UTY653 – a fly-in fly-out (FIFO) charter flight – when it was reportedly struck by lightning around 100kms South of Gladstone.

VH-FWI at Gladstone last week  (File photo taken by Jamie C  ©)

VH-FWI was noted to immediately turn-around and it returned to Brisbane without further incident.

Meanwhile, at Gladstone Airport, there are also unconfirmed reports that a light aircraft parked at Gladstone Airport was actually struck by lightning during the height of the storm on Thursday night.

As a result of the storm on Thursday, several other flights were diverted and delayed.  The evening QantasLink flight from Sydney – QLK2128 – operated by Dash-8-Q400 VH-QON – landed at Brisbane, while other flights to Gladstone from Brisbane were delayed.  Once the weather had cleared, Gladstone became quite busy around 9pm as three QantasLink Dash-8s and a Virgin Australia Regional Airlines ATR 72 all landed in quick succession.

Alliance F-100 VH-XWR was also noted arriving into Gladstone late on Thursday 14 November as UTY5653 – the delayed FIFO charter flight from Brisbane.

Then on Saturday 16 November, VH-XWR was photographed by local plane spotter Jamie C visiting Gladstone as UTY651/650, again a FIFO charter flight, during the early morning rain.

Some great photos from a wet Gladstone on Saturday.  My thanks to Jamie and Tash for sending them through!

Photos taken by Jamie C and Tash C  ©