QF flt cancelled due flap damage
 

This just in from news.com.au

Any idea how this one happened? Guessing a ground vehicle has come into contact with the flaps at some stage.

I posted a link about this under the final flight of the 747-300 but here the link to some pics again

http://www.theaussieaviator.net/showthread.php?t=23721

Didn't see that in the other thread :o

A bit of damage to the leading edge slats from what the photos show. I'm guessing ground equipment has hit it at some stage.

How did the crew miss that one on the walk-around??

The flaps are not extended during the walk around. This damage would have occured as the leading edge flaps were deployed after engine start.

A bit of damage?? WTF - that is major! 2 things - either the pilot did NOT do his walk around or some idiot has smashed into it afterwards and kept going! Qantas has serious problems - you can't deny that.

Is this a joke or something? This cannot be happening here surely.

This has me worried enough not to travel with QANTAS with all that has been happening lately.

Stay calms folks, lets not start to sound like media here and lets get the facts first.........Personally i would be mortified if the LE was like this at the gate.

So, assuming there were some professionals doing thier jobs while the A/C was at the gate, how could this have occurred?

Please, offer more serious, views from those with greater engineering knowledge, but I proffer the following:

1. Something hit it while under its own steam (highly unlikely not to have been noticed....);
OR
2. As previously suggested, (and IMHO, likely) mechanical failure during deployment.

Either way, another embarrassing engineering failure at the rat.

Question, WHO at QF really cares? The B743 is basically at the end of its life, put her down gently while there is a modicom of respect left.

Actually you should feel very safe because the systems worked - it was picked up before dispatch. As for your "2 things" comment - the future will probably prove both of them to be incorrect.

almost looks like on the LHS the flap jammed, and on the RHS it did its job properly, and hence just kinda tore it through the middle?

Is was a simple thing that wasn't picked up on a walk around but was picked up by maintenance crew. This happens everyday in aircraft flying whether it be GA to airlines to defence.

My five cents worth.

Cheers

Adam