Sunday, April 22, 2018

US, EU regulators ask airlines to probe engines; Jet Airways to inspect four

New Delhi: The aftermath of a fatal engine blowout on a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 aircraft has had an impact on Indian carriers too given that Jet Airways, SpiceJet and Air India Express also use the CFM56-7B engines on their aircraft. Following the incident which resulted in a passenger’s death, the US and European aviation safety regulators have called for inspection of the engines.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued separate emergency airworthiness directives late Friday mandating all airlines to perform an ultrasonic inspection of certain CFM56-7B engines manufactured by French company CFM. These directives were based on recommendations by the engine maker which was issued earlier. “CFM recommends ultrasonic inspections within the next 20 days to fan blades of CFM56-7B engines with more than 30,000 cycles since new,” it said. “Also, it recommends inspections by the end of August for fan blades with 20,000 cycles, and inspections to all other fan blades when they reach 20,000 cycles,” the company added. One cycle of a jet engine comprises an engine start, takeoff and landing, and full shut down.

In a statement, Jet Airways said it has commenced the required comprehensive checks to ensure “full compliance of the directives within the stipulated period of 20 days”. “The airline has four engines that are impacted by the directive with one already in scheduled maintenance. As the impact to Jet Airways is low, the inspections are not expected to cause any disruption to the airline’s published schedule and will be conducted well in advance of the stipulated timeline. Jet Airways is in close contact with both the aircraft and engine manufacturer as well as the Airworthiness authorities in both the US and India to ensure it is kept apprised of any further developments or initiatives that may be required or recommended,” the Mumbai-based airline said.

SpiceJet’s spokesperson said that the low-cost carrier had no engines in its fleet that have completed 30,000 cycles, but added that all directions from CFM were being complied with. A senior Air India official confirmed to The Indian Express on the phone that its low-cost arm Air India Express also operated its Boeing 737 fleet on CFM engines, which were being inspected as part of the ongoing process of the airline’s maintenance schedule.
22/04/18  Pranav Mukul/Indian Express
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