Dubai: A Qantas Airways flight that departed from Dubai on Monday was forced to divert and land in Singapore due to a problem with one of its engines.

Flight QF10, which left Dubai International at 1.05am, was already three hours into its flight to Melbourne, Australia when a ‘mechanical fault’ was detected.

The pilots reportedly had to shut one of the engines down while the plane was flying over Indian Ocean. 

The airline confirmed it had to divert the flight to Singapore's Changi International Airport.

Passengers have been assured that they can take the next available flight to complete their journey, or get an overnight stay in Singapore.

"QF10 from Dubai to Melbourne was required to divert to Singapore's Changi Airport due to a mechanical fault," the airline said in response to queries on social media.

“Customers will be booked on the next available service to their destination, or provided overnight accommodation.”

Qantas has constantly landed in the top list of airlines with best safety ratings.  In its latest survey, independent plane safety and product rating website AirlineRatings.com named the carrier as the safest in the world for the fourth consecutive year.