A CABIN door from a Jetstar Boeing 717 was ripped off before the plane was due to take off from Sydney airport last night.

In the dramatic tarmac incident, Jetstar Flight 552, bound for the Gold Coast, started to move away from the terminal at about 7pm while it was still attached to the air bridge.

Corporate relations manager for Jetstar Simon Westaway told The Australian last night the door was damaged as the plane moved away from the terminal for take-off.

Mr Westaway said no passengers were injured but the aircraft was not fit to fly.

The 125 passengers were transferred to other Jetstar and Qantas services and all arrived at Brisbane or Coolangatta last night.

However the return flight from Coolangatta, with another 125 passengers, had to be cancelled and the passengers were put up in hotels overnight.

The Qantas-owned budget airline expects to have all the passengers on flights to Sydney by 9am today.

Mr Westaway said Jetstar was obviously very unhappy about the incident and was investigating the matter, which involved a third- party ground handling company.

“It was not the outcome desired,” he said. “Our plane got damaged in the process. We are an experienced operator. We have been flying these planes for four years.

“The accident occurred due to human error and we are investigating the procedures to ensure it doesn’t happen again. It’s pretty obvious you don’t want your planes to get damaged.

“The matter is regrettable for those passengers who have been inconvenienced.”