Factbox: What are airlines doing in response to Cathay Pacific's Airbus A350 engine failure

StarLux Airlines

06/09/2024 14:16

(Adds Virgin Atlantic comments para 9)
    By Anna Chaberska and Alban Kacher
       Sept 6 (Reuters) - Several airlines are carrying out
precautionary inspections on their Airbus  AIR.PA  A350 fleets
after Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific  0293.HK  found 15 planes that
needed fuel line repairs following the in-flight failure of an
engine part.
    The issue occurred on a five-year-old Airbus A350-1000,
which uses Rolls-Royce's  RR.L  Trent XWB-97 engines, but some
carriers are also inspecting the more popular A350-900 aircraft
which use a different engine model.
    The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) on Thursday
gave airlines between three and 30 days to carry out visual
checks and measurements on the fuel houses in A350-1000 engines.
The A350-900 is not affected.
    Here is what airlines are doing, divided by the model of the
aircraft:
    
    A350-1000
    Cathay Pacific, which has 48 A350 jets, identified 15
aircraft that required the replacement of engine components that
were set to be completed by Saturday. It did not specify which
models were being repaired.
    Japan Airlines (JAL)  9201.T , which has five new
A350-1000s, said on Thursday it had inspected those engines and
found no defects. It will do additional inspections on the
aircraft based on a Service Bulletin issued by Rolls-Royce.
    Qatar Airways said on Friday it was carrying out inspections
of its 24 A350-1000s after it received a directive from EASA and
Rolls-Royce.
    UAE's Etihad Airways, which has five A350-1000s, said it was
inspecting engines across its A350 fleet and had so far not
found issues.
    Virgin Atlantic, which operates 12 A350-1000s, said on
Friday it has received an Airworthiness Directive to inspect the
XWB engines, adding that it is working closely with Airbus and
Rolls Royce. Inspections should cause "minimal disruptions" to
the group's flying programme, it said.
    British Airways, which has 18 A350-1000s, has not commented
on the situation.
    
    A350-900
    A spokesperson for JAL said the Tokyo-based carrier had also
carried out voluntary inspections of its A350-900 aircraft as a
precaution and no problems were found.
    Air China  601111.SS , a major A350-900 operator, will
perform general engine checks, reported Caixin, a Chinese
business and economics publication.
    Singapore Airlines  SIAL.SI , which has a fleet of 63
A350-900 planes, said it was inspecting the engines on its
aircraft but there was no impact on flights.
    Delta Air Lines  DAL.N , which has 30 A350-900s, said the
airline runs its global operation "with the high standard of
care for safety, reliability and care that we always do".
    Thai Airways  THAI.BK , which has 23 of them, said its
technicians continuously review the situation and make engine
checks regularly.

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EXPLAINER-What is the issue with Cathay Pacific's A350
Rolls-Royce engines?     urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL8N3KL00L
Europe regulator orders checks on Airbus A350-1000 engines   
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N3KN0EH
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 (Compiled by Alban Kacher and Anna Chaberska in Gdansk; editing
by Milla Nissi and Sharon Singleton)
 ((alban.kacher@thomsonreuters.com;
anna.chaberska@thomsonreuters.com))