Engine fire on Cathay Pacific CX383, Airbus A350, Rolls-Royce XWB-97

[Astronuc]

PARIS (Reuters) -Airbus and Rolls-Royce are preparing to brief airlines on the fallout from an engine emergency that prompted Cathay Pacific to review its fleet of A350s as pressure from airlines mounts for clarity, two people familiar with the matter said.

Barring fresh evidence as investigators examine the fuel system of a jet forced to return to Hong Kong on Monday, manufacturers have been leaning against recommending worldwide checks but the final word lies with regulators, the people said.
. . .
Some carriers including Singapore Airlines and Japan Airlines had been conducting precautionary checks of their entire A350 fleets after Cathay Pacific said it had found 15 of its 48 A350 jets needed repairs to fuel lines.

Reuters - Airbus, Rolls to break silence to airlines on Cathay Pacific A350 engine incident, sources say
https://news.yahoo.com/news/finance/news/airbus-rolls-brief-airlines-pressure-205045881.html
https://www.reuters.com/business/ae...rlines-pressure-a350-checks-eases-2024-09-04/

The A350-1000, the larger of two models in the Airbus A350 family, and its Rolls-Royce XWB-97 engines have been under the spotlight since a Zurich-bound jet was forced to return to Hong Kong after an engine problem, later traced to a fuel leak.

Initial investigations have revealed that a flexible pipe feeding a fuel injection nozzle in the XWB-97 engine was pierced, the people said.

Hong Kong investigators are now expected to focus on whether that hole was the origin of the fuel leak or was itself caused by a different problem, yet to be identified, they added.

Did a foreign object enter the engine and impact the fuel line? If so, how? Or did the leak happen due to hydraulic pressure and component failure, which may indicate an internal flaw, or a potential issue with installation, either considered a manufacturing issue.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/05/business/europe-airbus-a350-checks-cathay-intl-hnk/index.html

Cathay Pacific Flight CX383 was affected.

https://www.france24.com/en/live-ne...bus-a350-inspections-after-cathay-engine-fire

https://www.reuters.com/business/ae...pacifics-a350-rolls-royce-engines-2024-09-03/

A problem unfolded several minutes after take-off on flight CX383 from Hong Kong to Zurich on Monday, according to flight tracking service FlightRadar24.

A source familiar with the matter said a leak in a fuel system appeared to have caused a brief engine fire that was quickly extinguished by the crew of the Zurich-bound jet.

This is a developing story at this time.

 

[Vanadium 50]

I love CX, even though it has had its troubles.

One thing that would concern me is that HKG-ZRH flies over Russian airspace, which is not exactly the safest place in the world to be. It also means if you need to divert, you could find yourself in Russia, waiting for your government to exchange you. Engine problems are a good reason to need to divert.

I'd probably fly LX if I had to go that route.

 

[Baluncore]

One thing that would concern me is that HKG-ZRH flies over Russian airspace, which is not exactly the safest place in the world to be.

CX383-CPA383 now carefully avoids Russian airspace by taking a route that is very busy these days. That route is over: China - Kazakhstan - Georgia - Turkey - Romania - Hungary - Austria - Germany - Switzerland.

 

[Vanadium 50]

One fewer thing to worry about. CX made a big deal a while back about flying over Russia - I guess not this route.

Now the best reason to fly LX is the chocolate.

 

[Astronuc]

"In-service and in-shop inspections since then have identified that a specific cleaning process available during engine refurbishment may lead to fuel manifold main fuel hose degradation", EASA said.

One person familiar with the probe said the wrong type of cleaning product may have been used in at least one repair plant.

The checks are designed to find whether other engines may have been damaged in this way. So far only Cathay has confirmed it found some fuel-line damage on other jets, though Malaysia Airlines said it found and solved a potential problem.

https://www.reuters.com/business/ae...ne-failure-due-ruptured-fuel-hose-2024-09-19/
This is why nuclear facilities, and I would expect aerospace/aeronautical facilities have 'approved materials' and/or 'prohibited materials' lists in order to prevent contamination or damage to critical components.


Same story reported on Yahoo News
https://news.yahoo.com/news/finance/news/hong-kong-probe-reveals-cathay-055713764.html

 

[Vanadium 50]

This is why nuclear facilities, and I would expect aerospace/aeronautical facilities have 'approved materials' and/or 'prohibited materials' lists in order to prevent contamination or damage to critical components.

Or your kitty litter goes up in flames.