LONDON/PARIS – Europe’s air safety regulator on Sept 5 ordered inspections on engines of Airbus A350-1000 jets after an engine fire during the flight of a Cathay Pacific jetliner.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) said it was acting to prevent similar events after consulting regulators and accident investigators in Hong Kong, where Cathay is based, as well as Airbus and engine supplier Rolls-Royce.
“This action is a precautionary measure, based on the information received from the initial investigation of the recent Cathay Pacific serious incident and on the airline’s findings in its own subsequent inspections,” EASA Executive Director Florian Guillermet said in a statement.
EASA also confirmed that the failure of a hose in the fuel system had caused a fire that was quickly tackled by crew.
A “serious incident” is an investigative term in aviation that means there was a high probability of an accident.
“We will continue to follow closely all information that will be made available through the ongoing safety investigation,” Mr Guillermet said.
The move affects the larger of two models of twin-engined A350, the A350-1000, which represents 15 per cent of the A350 fleet or 86 jets. The smaller and widely sold A350-900 is not affected.
In an emergency directive issued late on Sept 5, EASA gave airlines between three and 30 days to carry out visual checks and measurements on the fuel hoses but did not call for parts to be removed for the work, unless they were found to be damaged.
It excluded engines already inspected by Cathay.
Rolls-Royce and Airbus said earlier they were working closely with authorities to comply with the planned directive. Rolls said it was focused on minimising any short-term disruption, adding: “We apologise to those who may be affected”.
The A350-1000 and its XWB-97 engines have been under the spotlight since a Zurich-bound jet was forced to return to Hong Kong on Sept 2 after the engine problem, later traced to a fuel leak.
Initial investigations have revealed that a hose between a manifold and a fuel injection nozzle was pierced, sources said on Sept 4, and the Hong Kong-led probe must now determine whether this was the cause or a consequence of the incident.
EASA said the fire had caused heat damage to the engine housing, including ducts used for reverse-thrust on landing.
“This condition, if not detected and corrected could, in combination with additional failures, lead to a more severe engine fire and resulting damage to an aeroplane,” it said.
Reuters had reported earlier on Sept 5 that the EASA’s measure was likely to involve a visual inspection with progressive deadlines – a relatively light maintenance task.
By ordering checks, however, EASA partially overrode efforts by manufacturers to avoid disruptive action on the whole fleet on the basis of their own technical analysis, sources said.
Barring fresh evidence, they had been leaning against recommending worldwide checks but the final say is with regulators, sources told Reuters on Sept 4.
Europe regulator orders checks on Airbus A350-1000 engines
