An Emirates Airbus A340 carrying more than 225 people slammed its tail into the runway as it took off from Melbourne, Australia on March 21, sending smoke into the cabin and forcing the pilot to make an emergency landing. No one was hurt on Flight EK407 bound for Dubai. After the strike, which reportedly left debris strewn on the runway and knocked out some runway lights, the pilot flew over the sea, dumping fuel, before returning to the airport and landing without incident. Such incidents, known as "tail hits" are caused by a number of factors, such as the angle of takeoff, weather conditions and loading issues.

On March 6, another Emirates A340 flight with 120 passengers on board was forced to return to Perth International Airport after the crew reported an in-flight emergency to air traffic control. The passengers on Flight EK425 disembarked so emergency services workers and police officers could inspect the plane. There are no reported injuries from the incident. Emergency vehicles and fire crews had been alerted when the airport's emergency system was activated, but were not required to respond to an emergency.