Qantas woes leave passengers in a spin

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Stranded passengers hoping to use Australian airline Qantas will have been checking their travel insurance policies after two more incidents in a string of mechanical problems hit the carrier.

The latest problems saw two planes - one bound for London - grounded in Melbourne after staff detected leaking fumes and a damaged wing. Both flights were cancelled and passengers were left stranded overnight.

The most serious recent incident happened in July when a flight from London to Melbourne was forced down in the Philippines after an oxygen tank exploded and ripped a gaping hole in the fuselage.

In August, Qantas temporarily pulled six planes from service because of maintenance irregularities. It blamed poor record-keeping and said there were no safety implications for the aircraft.

But Australia's aviation agency said a review of Qantas found deficiencies in the way the airline maintains its planes. The Civil Aviation Safety Authority ordered improvements, although it found no link among the recent problems.

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