The incident is eerily similar to an occurrence earlier this month involving a larger Qantas Dreamliner sat at Newcastle Airport.

The new widebodies are already two years late and could be crucial to Qantas both launching new international routes or adding capacity to existing services.

The planemaker played down safety concerns on the aircraft currently flying and insisted only “near-term” deliveries would be affected.  

Wing Commander Steven Thornton said the “threat replication” at the Nevada Test and Training Range was some of the most advanced in the world.