QF32? - A380 Emergency Landing at Changi

[NeilP]

Huge lightning and thunderstorms, torrential rain, some hail... Wouldn't wanna be up there in it...

[Geoff W]

from Herald Sun

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/travel/n...-1225950837497

Kind regards,

Geoff

[Jarden S]

Originally Posted by Tom Barber

Various sources have -OQD, -OQE and -OQF as in LAX. I think 1-2 of them were already enroute to LAX when -OQA suffered it's mishap.

Also OQB in FRA under maintenance and that leaves only OQC in SYD.

Next Flights DJ1636 CNS-TSV-CNS 1/2 Dec

[Philip Argy]

SQ has now joined QF in grounding Trent-900 powered A380s with "oil stains": http://yssyforum.net/board/showpost....46&postcount=1

Not sure what the mechanism involved is but I surmise that leaking oil can end up compromisng the clearance between the turbine and the casing, causing failure.

[Robert S]

Originally Posted by Philip Argy

Not sure what the mechanism involved is but I surmise that leaking oil can end up compromisng the clearance between the turbine and the casing, causing failure.

It could just as easily be merely indictative of an issue, rather than a direct cause.

[Philip Argy]

Certainly could, Robert - total speculation on my part as to what's causing the issue, but I'm renowned for sticking my neck out!

[Geoff W]

From Herald Sun:

"INVESTIGATORS probing the A380 engine saga have found that an oil fire may have led to the mid-air engine explosion last week that seriously damaged a Qantas jet.

Details of what is believed to have occurred were revealed today in an emergency directive by the European Aviation Safety Authority to all airlines which bought superjumbos fitted with the now suspect Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engine.

Singapore Airlines and German carrier Lufthansa are the only other airlines flying Rolls-Royce powered super jumbos.

In today's directive, the European safety regulator said that a preliminary study indicated an oil fire may have caused the engine's intermediate pressure turbine disc to fail.

"This condition, if not detected, could ultimately result in uncontained engine failure, potentially leading to damage to the aeroplane and hazards to persons or property on the ground,'' the regulator warned.


Yesterday's directive makes it mandatory for the three carriers to carry out regular and repetitive engine inspections to check for oil leaks.

Should excess oil be found, then the engines must be shut down to prevent the likelihood of damage and drained of any excess oil, the regular said.

In response to the note, Qantas made it clear that it intends to keep its six superjumbos grounded indefinitely.

The national carrier said A380s would not return to service until there was "complete certainty'' they could operate safely.

The disclosures by the European regulator confirmed reports earlier this week that an oil spotting problem was to blame for last week's mid-air engine drama involving the airline's A380 flagship, the Nancy Bird-Walton.

Until now, neither the airline nor engine maker Rolls-Royce has been able to give a detailed explanation of why the number two engine on the big jet blew itself apart and rained debris over Bantam Island in in Indonesia.

Qantas said the specific checks ordered by the regulator were being carried out by Qantas engineers and Rolls-Royce.

Meanwhile, the airline has shuffled its fleet and replaced the troubled A380s with other aircraft.

The carrier said that a new schedule had been drafted to provide certainty for customers and their travel arrangements."



Apart from the enormous cost, what would the viability of changing engines to the same as EK has?

Or are the fittings so different that it just wouldnt work. Sorry I dont know! obviously to those in the know.

The costs are already adding up daily with the fleet out of use for now.

Unsure of "Yesterday's directive makes it mandatory for the three carriers to carry out regular and repetitive engine inspections to check for oil leaks."

What cost is this going to add?

Even if they are checked pre take-off, couldnt it occur as a flight progresses?

Again I dont know.

You wouldnt want it to happen half way across the Pacific for example.

Kind regards,

Geoff

[Philip Argy]

If there's an oil seal flaw that can lead to an oil fire that can trigger an uncontained engine failure it essentially means that every Trent 900 is a ticking time bomb, and with two hanging off each wing, what carrier would not follow the Qantas lead in grounding their A380 fleet until a mechanism for confidently removing the risk has been devised?

[Justin L]

Excerpt from the Qantas website:

While Qantas is committed to bringing its A380s back into service as soon as possible, this contingency schedule has been designed to provide certainty for customers planning to travel in the near future.

The Qantas Group has a fleet of over 250 aircraft across domestic and international operations and all Qantas aircraft are being utilised to minimise schedule disruptions.

Boeing 747s have been replaced by A330s on the Sydney to Narita route and A330s have been replaced by B767s on Perth to Singapore services. B747s have also been replaced by A330s on the Sydney to Hong Kong route. These changes will enable Qantas to operate 747s on long-haul international services previously operated by the A380.

For the period of 5 to 11 November, Qantas operated 505 of the 512 scheduled services across its international network.

Minor changes have been made to aircraft operating certain domestic services in order to provide alternate capacity on the Qantas international network.

[Robert S]

http://www.atsb.gov.au/newsroom/news...singapore.aspx

Update: 2.50pm - 11 November 2010
Safety action in response to the engine failure
On 10 November 2010 (European time), the European Aviation Safety Agency issued airworthiness directive EASA AD No: 2010-0236-E in respect of the operation of the Rolls-Royce PLC RB211 Trent 900 series engines. The airworthiness directive introduces a requirement for the periodic inspection of the high pressure/intermediate pressure engine structure for any abnormal oil leakage. If any discrepancy is identified, the further operation of that engine is prohibited.

This action is based on a preliminary analysis of the circumstances of the engine failure by the European Aviation Safety Agency, which the agency says shows that an oil fire in the high pressure/low pressure structure cavity may have caused the failure of the intermediate pressure turbine disc.

While the investigation is ongoing, and may take some time to fully understand the nature and implications of the engine failure, the action by the European Aviation Safety Agency to issue AD No: 2010-0236-E represents proactive safety action to minimise risk. That safety action will be reflected in the ATSB preliminary factual report that will be released to the public no later than 3 December 2010.

A full copy of EASA AD: 2010-0236-E is available at: http://ad.easa.europa.eu/ad/2010-0236-E