Oxygen canister found to be missing from Qantas 747.

An exploding oxygen canister has been suspected of blowing the big hole in the fuselage of the Qantas 747 en-route to Melbourne. The airline has been ordered to check all the oxygen bottles on its 30 fleet of 747s.

After the pilot had to make an emergency landing in Manila one of the oxygen bottles usually stored in the area where the explosion occurred was found to be missing.

Reports have also come to light that some of the oxygen masks onboard the aircraft were in poor condition and some didn't even deploy nearly causing some passengers to pass out.

An hour after departing Honk Kong a loud bang was heard and the aircraft descended from 29,000 feet to 10,000. All crew and passengers embarked unharmed.

Investigators have said no evidence of an explosive material has been found onboard the plane or in any luggage.