Apple Magazine

WHY A PLANE’S ENGINE EXPLODED OVER DENVER

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The investigat­ion into an engine explosion on a jetliner taking off from Denver is focusing on a fan blade that appeared to be weakened by wear and tear, a developmen­t reminiscen­t of a fatal failure on board another plane in 2018.

These and other recent engine failures raise questions over long-held assumption­s about how long fan blades last and whether they are being inspected often enough.

A Boeing 777 operated by United Airlines had to make an emergency landing in Denver after one of its engines blew apart, spewing huge chunks of wreckage that landed in neighborho­ods and sports fields. Passengers captured video of the crippled engine, wobbling and still on fire, as pilots made a safe return to the airport minutes after the plane bound for Hawaii took off.

WHAT HAPPENED?

Investigat­ors said that two fan blades in the Pratt & Whitney engine broke off and one of them showed signs of metal fatigue, or hairline cracks from the stress of wear and tear. They believe the weakened blade broke off first, then chipped off half of an adjacent blade.

Robert Sumwalt, chairman of the National Transporta­tion Safety Board, said the agency’s investigat­ors will examine maintenanc­e records for the engine and fan blades. He said fan blade pieces — including one found on a soccer field in a Denver suburb — was examined in a Pratt & Whitney laboratory.

Federal Aviation Administra­tion head Stephen Dickson said inspectors quickly determined that inspection­s should be done more frequently for the type of hollow fan blades in certain Pratt & Whitney engines that are used on some Boeing 777s.

As a result, 69 planes and another 59 in storage were grounded in the U.S., Japan and South Korea, the only countries with planes using this particular engine. United, the only U.S. carrier with affected planes, said it grounded 24 Boeing 777s and 28 others will remain parked. Japanese regulators ordered Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways to ground 32 planes, and South Korea’s Korean Air and Asiana Airlines said they will ground their Boeing 777s.

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 ??  ?? Engine explodes moments into United Airlines flight
Engine explodes moments into United Airlines flight

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