Airlines ground dozens of Boeing 777's after engine failure

[Commander Wallace]

Boeing has suspended operations for more than 100 of the 777 aircraft after an engine on a United Airlines flight from Denver caught fire and scattered debris in a Colorado neighborhood. Pert of an engine went through a roof of a house. There were no reported injuries from the falling debris.



Quote: Fifty-nine more aircraft were in storage. The company said the suspensions would remain in effect until the Federal Aviation Administration identified an "appropriate inspection protocol" for the aircraft.


https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/faa-orders-stepped-inspections-boeing-777s-after-engine-failure-united-n1258477

[3catcircus]

Boeing has suspended operations for more than 100 of the 777 aircraft after an engine on a United Airlines flight from Denver caught fire and scattered debris in a Colorado neighborhood. Pert of an engine went through a roof of a house. There were no reported injuries from the falling debris.



Quote: Fifty-nine more aircraft were in storage. The company said the suspensions would remain in effect until the Federal Aviation Administration identified an "appropriate inspection protocol" for the aircraft.


https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/faa-orders-stepped-inspections-boeing-777s-after-engine-failure-united-n1258477

I think we're overlooking the most important thing - the airframe stayed intact and they were able to make a single-engine landing.

[Commander Wallace]

I think we're overlooking the most important thing - the airframe stayed intact and they were able to make a single-engine landing.


This is very true and the issue was not the air frame itself but the Pratt and Whitney engines that power this model aircraft. I saw footage where the engine was on fire, in flight. I'm thankful it didn't explode and the pilot was able to land on one engine. I also noticed the compressor blades remained relatively intact. The cowling and other pieces came off the engine. Maybe you and / or our other members would know why the engine wasn't shut off and how safe the wing tanks are in the event of an engine fire like this. I know we have members here in aviation field.

[Jimbuna]

When I visited Neal for the SubSim Meet it was a 777 I flew in.

[Mr Quatro]

Did you know the plane was on the way to Honolulu, HI? :yep:

I wanted to fly to Hawaii after this coronavirus thing is over, but not now ... :oops:

The next way over will have to be by cruise ship and they won't let you if it is a round trip from say the west coast to Hawaii, but with this coronavirus thing they have decided to charge you for one way to Hawaii and then for one way back.

So you can stay as long as you like or not even come back at all :o

Three times the cost though at $1,500 per person and double occupancy unless you get the crews quarters prices for a single person.

Haven't flown in a long time and I'm not going to ... Boeing is lucky on this one that no one was killed.

I heard two were injured though :yep:

[3catcircus]

This is very true and the issue was not the air frame itself but the Pratt and Whitney engines that power this model aircraft. I saw footage where the engine was on fire, in flight. I'm thankful it didn't explode and the pilot was able to land on one engine. I also noticed the compressor blades remained relatively intact. The cowling and other pieces came off the engine. Maybe you and / or our other members would know why the engine wasn't shut off and how safe the wing tanks are in the event of an engine fire like this. I know we have members here in aviation field.

I'm assuming that the fire suppression system might have been damaged, preventing full extinguishment.

Engines generally don't "explode." There may be a catastrophic blade failure where the turbine tears itself apart, sending shrapnel through the engine and mechanically separating it, but jet fuel is actually really hard to ignite, let alone explode, unless it is vapor, and I'm sure they isolated fuel to that engine. The danger would have been if the fire consumed the engine at which point it more likely could have structurally weakened the pylon and dropped the engine, like a bomb rather than catching the rest of the plane on fire - the frigid wind blowing across the engine with no fuel likely kept the engine from catching everything else on fire. I'm guessing the parts that were on fire probably contained flammables such as insulation, hydraulic fluid, or magnesium.

[Skybird]

A dated engine, TV analysis said over here. Not the first of its kind that fell apart in midair, they said. There have been others - plural -before.

[Sean C]

I wanted to fly to Hawaii after this coronavirus thing is over, but not now ... :oops:


Plane crashes and emergencies make headlines. But thousands of flights take off and land every single day without incident.


Of course, no one wants to hear about business as usual.

[3catcircus]

A dated engine, TV analysis said over here. Not the first of its kind that fell apart in midair, they said. There have been others - plural -before.

Tv analysis isn't worth anything. Guarantee that whoever was the reporter knows little too nothing about aviation.

Engines undergo a routine series of inspections and overhauls, as does the airframe and systems.

Engine inspections typically occur every couple of thousand hours of operation. There is now an emergency inspection order issued by the FAA on PW4000 engines and I expect other civil aviation authorities have done the same.

The ridiculousness of the uninformed reporters is evident - there was a story of a 747-400F dropping parts of an engine in the Netherlands and they reported it as "Just like in Denver..."

No, it's nothing like in Denver - the 74F uses CF6, RB211, or PW4056 engines, not PW4000-112s like the 772. And as a cargo carrier, they are operating under a different set of regulations than when carrying meat...

[Mr Quatro]

Plane crashes and emergencies make headlines. But thousands of flights take off and land every single day without incident.


Of course, no one wants to hear about business as usual.

Well, there has only been one passenger plane that ever crashed on the way to Hawaii from stateside to Oahu itself ... Ran out of fuel back in the mid-fifties and landed on the water just happen to be near a cruise ship that rescued everyone not one person lost, but why take a chance when you have other options.

Just defending my fear :yep:

[Onkel Neal]

When I visited Neal for the SubSim Meet it was a 777 I flew in.

Are you taking responsibility? ;)

[Jimbuna]

Are you taking responsibility? ;)

No but I'm confident Steve will :)

[Catfish]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwNCCrjMmeg