Pilots land plane with engine failing

The Australian pilots of a Cathay Pacific A330 are being hailed as heroes after successfully landing an aircraft at high speed after the engines malfunctioned

The problem was first noticed, on the flight from Surabaya in Indonesia, when the aircraft was on descent.

The plane, twenty minutes away from landing at Hong Kong International Airport, suffered wild variations in thrust in both engines.

The pilots were forced at one stage to shut the right hand engine down, before restarting it.

When the A330 touched down at high speed, the right hand engine was idle and the left hand engine was delivering 70 per cent power, well above the power usually needed for landing.

The unequal and powerful thrust caused the aircraft to veer violently to one side.

Extreme braking was required to stop the plane, resulting in the tyres overheating. Six of the eight tyres on the main undercarriage deflated automatically to prevent fire.

Eight passengers received minor injuries during the evacuation.

Hong Kong's Civil Aviation department said it would investigate the "serious aircraft incident".

Safety experts from Airbus and Rolls Royce were due to arrive in Hong Kong to assist local authorities and the airline with the investigation.