Italian authorities have issued three recommendations to increase Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engine safety, following a serious incident in August 2019. At the time, left engine on Norwegian Air Shuttle Boeing 787-8 broke down shortly after take-off, pouring 4 kg of debris on Italian city streets.
Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 problems by Italian authorities
The Norwegian Dreamliner that suffered in-flight shut down, was equipped with two Rolls-Royce 1000 G/01A engines. The Italian Civil Aviation Safety Investigation Authority (ANSV) has found that two intermediate-pressure turbines (IPT) on the broken engine were fractured and the fractures are "attributable" to the same corrosion fatigue problems detected in ten previous cases of in-flight shut down in the Trent 1000 fleet.
While unusual corrosion in IPT blades has already been addressed by the manufacturer and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), at the time of the incident the particular engine on Norwegian Dreamliner was 200 flight cycles short of the hard life limit currently mandate by EASA. Ultimately, the Italian investigation has suggested that current EASA and Rolls-Royce's efforts to solve IPT blade fatigue problem fall short and additional measures are needed.
On September 4, 2019, ANSV made public its three recommendations regarding engine safety for EASA to address. EASA is asked to define different safety measures than the ones currently in place. For example, stringent time limits for the Trent 1000 pre-mod 72-H818 IPT blades could be one of the solutions, ANSV writes.
The Italian authority suggests EASA to "re-evaluate the whole validity of the service management adopted by the manufacturer". The final recommendation is to come back and evaluate relevant de-pairing pre-mod 72-H818 engines provisions, in order to minimize the risk of two faulty engines installed on the same aircraft.
In early 2016, the launch customer of the Boeing 787, All Nippon Airways (ANA), detected unusual corrosion in IPT blades, resulting in early wear and cracking on Trent 1000 engines. This forced Rolls Royce to start a long campaign of inspections and replacement of defective parts.
Norwegian Boeing 787-8 engine parts poured down on Italian streets
On August 10, 2019, Norwegian Boeing 787-8 (reg. LN-LND), operating flight DY-7115 from Rome Fiumicino International Airport (FCO) to Los Angeles (LAX), suffered left engine failure shortly after takeoff, forcing the aircraft to turn back and perform an emergency landing at FCO.
While the Dreamliner landed safely and none of the 298 passengers on board was injured, the incident did cause damage for residents of Fiumicino, a city located nearby the airport. According to ANSV, 4 kilograms of debris, mainly turbine blades, poured down on the streets of Fiumicino, wrecking houses, roofs and cars. One person, who was reportedly injured by falling debris, later recalled: "Hundreds of those pieces fell, boiling. One of them hit me on the right side. I got slightly burned," as reported in AdnKronos.
Italian investigators do not mention any people injured during the incident.
Updated on August 13, 2019. To include comment from the victim. Engine fragments of a Norwegian Boeing 787 fell from the sky shortly after takeoff from Fiumicino airport in Rome, Italy, damaging houses, roofs, and cars. One person was injured in the incident.
"We are aware of the event and are working with our customer to provide support and technical assistance," Rolls-Royce spokesperson told AeroTime at the time. "We are committed to working closely with the airline, aircraft manufacturer and the relevant authorities to support their investigation".
Federal Aviation Administration Considers Calling For Airbus A220 Engine Checks
The Federal Aviation Administration is considering calling for Airbus A220 checks in light of an issue that led to at least two inflight shutdowns. This will means extra checks and the possible replacement of several Pratt & Whitney geared turbofan oil system components that caused two inflight incidents.
An Air Baltic A220 was the first aircraft affected by the engine issue caused by an oil leak. Photo: Markus Eigenheer on Wikimedia
What is the problem with Airbus A220 engines?
The draft notice, published on September 10th, proposes inspections of the PW1500Gs and PW1900G, ATW reports. The gap between the oil supply of the engine and the fuel oil cooler is to be inspected repetitively. Moreover, operators are to swap the fuel oil cooler and the supply tube for new components to comply with Pratt & Whitney's service guidance.
The issue was revealed earlier this year when P&W addressed it with its service bulletins. When contacted by Flight Global, the company did not disclose more details than those provided in the service bulletins.
P&W only mentioned that it recommends "inspection and replacement of hardware on PW1500G and PW1900G engines to prevent possible oil leakage between an oil supply tube and the fuel oil cooler."
The initial checks will take place within 300 cycles starting from the effective date of the mandate, with the next inspections to follow-up at every 850 cycles. The PW1500G is the engine of the A220 series, whereas the PW1900G is mainly used on the Embraer E-Jet range.
The time limit for comments on the FAA proposed directive is October 25th, 2019.
When was the problem reported?
There were at least two separate incidents linked to low oil pressure on two A220 aircraft. An AirBaltic A220-300 returned to Riga International Airport on August 5th, 2018, shortly after takeoff. The decision to return was made when the crew received a low oil-pressure warning for engine no.2.
The second incident took place on October 13th, 2018, involving a Swiss International Air Lines A220-100 en route to Zurich from Paris. In this case, the flight continued to its destination.
Another in-flight engine shutdown took place in July 2019, on a Swiss A220 flying from Geneva to London. However, a subsequent investigation determined the shutdown was not related to the oil issue. The flight was diverted to Paris.
Previous life limitation issues
This news follows on from issues discovered earlier in the year with the PW1500G, which led to an NPRM being published by the FAA. This NPRM reduces the life limitations of the engine, following the discovery of excessive corrosion in the engine during a routine overhaul.
The PW1500G is used on all A220 aircraft, of which 81 have so far been delivered (as of the end of August 2019). The largest fleets are with Lufthansa Group (for Swiss) with 29, Delta Air Lines with 21 and airBaltic with 19. More than 500 A220s are currently on order.
Four more IndiGo planes with P&W-engines face glitches
- IndiGo, said two of the reported cases were routine maintenance issues and the planes are back into operations
- In the other case, the aircraft is currently undergoing 'C check' at an MRO facility in Hyderabad, the airline said
MUMBAI : Glitches with Pratt & Whitney engines began to dog IndiGo again with four more A320s and A321s reporting one issue or other between Sunday and Tuesday, according to a source.
Besides, the airline is reportedly deploying a few planes powered by P&W engines for daily operations despite those planes earlier reporting heavy engine vibration, the source added.
However, a senior DGCA official rebutted the allegations saying "some engines, which reported vibrations were within the limits prescribed by the US and European aviation safety regulators and they have been released for operations after boroscopic inspection."
Nevertheless, the regulator is keeping a close watch on them, the official added.
According to the source, on Tuesday an IndiGo flight bound to Doha being operated by an A321 Neo plane (VT-IUC) was recalled to the bay from take-off holding point due to a technical issue in Delhi, while a full emergency was declared for a Chennai-Delhi flight on its arrival Monday due to a technical glitch.
In another incident Monday, a Hyderabad-bound IndiGo flight operated by an A320 plane was forced to abort take-off after the pilot reported a technical snag in Bengaluru, the source added.
Before this, on September 8, the airline's Hyderabad- Gorakhpur flight was diverted to Varanasi due to an engine stall, which was accompanied by high engine vibrations, the source said.
IndiGo, said two of the reported cases were routine maintenance issues and the planes are back into operations.
In the other case, the aircraft is currently undergoing 'C check' at an MRO facility in Hyderabad, the airline said.
"There were two instances, wherein one was in Mumbai which resulted in an air turn back. The other one was in Guwahati which resulted in an aborted take-off at low speed. Both these aircraft are withdrawn from services and are awaiting engine replacement," the airline said in a statement.
A senior DGCA official, in response to quires on the incidents from PTI said all these occurrences have been attended to and wherever needed the pre-emptive actions such as engine replacements have been undertaken.
"Some of the engines, which reported vibrations were within the limits prescribed by the FAA and the EASA and after the boroscopic inspection they were released. Some of events referred also took place in aircraft with CEO (current engine option) engines, Boeing 737s, Bombardier Q400s, and ATRs," the official said.
"We are keeping a close watch on these issues. We reiterate our commitment to complete safety," the official said.
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