Complete Suspension of Japan Operations
[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] On the 21st (local time), the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered an emergency inspection and decided to immediately suspend operations of the Boeing 777 aircraft after debris fell off a plane operated by United Airlines.
FAA Administrator Steve Dickson stated in a press release, "The FAA is strengthening inspections on some Boeing 777 aircraft equipped with Pratt & Whitney PW4000 series engines, and it is highly likely that some aircraft will be excluded from operation."
He added, "After reviewing all safety data following yesterday's incident, we concluded that the inspection interval for the fan blades, a dedicated engine part for the Boeing 777, should be shortened based on initial information."
United Airlines said it will discuss with regulatory authorities the necessary additional measures to resume operations of all 24 aircraft of the model under strict safety standards.
The day before, a United Airlines Boeing 777 passenger plane departing from Denver International Airport in Colorado en route to Honolulu returned to Denver Airport shortly after takeoff due to a failure in the right engine.
The aircraft landed safely, but debris that fell off in midair covered residential areas near the airport. Colorado local police reported that debris fell in several residential areas but there were no reports of injuries.
The PW4000 engine blades involved in the accident are made of hollow titanium material and are used only on Boeing 777 models, according to the FAA. Bloomberg News reported that Boeing 777 aircraft equipped with PW4000 series engines are operated in the U.S., Japan, and South Korea.
Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism decided to suspend all operations of passenger planes equipped with the same series of engines in connection with the accident. The Boeing 777 aircraft equipped with the same series of engines are owned by Japan's two major airlines: Japan Airlines (JAL) with 13 planes and All Nippon Airways (ANA) with 19 planes.
Both airlines suspended operations of the model and deployed substitute aircraft immediately after news of the United Airlines accident was reported, even before the Ministry's directive.
Kyodo News reported that Japan Airlines Flight 904, a Boeing 777 that departed Okinawa Naha Airport for Haneda Airport on December 4 last year, also had fan blades and other engine parts damaged and was equipped with the same engine as the United Airlines aircraft involved in the recent incident.
Regarding the engine anomaly of the Japan Airlines Boeing 777 in December last year, the Japan Transport Safety Board classified it as a serious matter that could have led to a major accident and is investigating the detailed cause.
The Japan Airlines aircraft, which experienced engine trouble after takeoff and returned safely to Naha Airport, was confirmed to have lost part of the engine cover during flight and had a hole approximately 28 cm in size on the horizontal stabilizer.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
