Japan Airlines grounds P&W-equipped jets
Boeing retirement moved up following 2 mid-air failures
Japan Airlines announced Tuesday it retired Boeing 777 planes equipped with Pratt & Whitney engines following two mid-air failures, one involving a Japan Airlines plane last December.
Japan Airlines said it accelerated the retirement of its planes with Pratt & Whitney engines by March. Sidelining the planes was originally scheduled for March 2022, the airline said. The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered specialized inspections all Boeing 777s powered by Pratt & Whitney engines.
There are no known plans among airlines for Boeing 777 planes with Pratt & Whitney engines to resume flights.
A spokeswoman said Pratt & Whitney, a subsidiary of Raytheon Technologies Corp., is not commenting on the Japan Airlines announcement.
“This is an acceleration of their planned retirement, and P&W stands ready to continue to support their operations,” she said.
Japan Airlines said it was responding to an incident involving an engine failure on a Dec. 4, 2020, Japan Airlines flight from Okinawa Naha to Tokyo Haneda airport, and a United Airlines engine failure near Denver on Feb. 20.
Japan Airlines said it began operating Pratt & Whitney-equipped Boeing 777 planes in 1996.
Federal investigators are focusing on fan blades as they probe the third Pratt & Whitney mid-air engine failure in as many years, this one raining down debris on houses and fields in a Denver suburb.
In February 2018, a United Airlines
777-200 outfitted with Pratt and Whitney PW4077 engines, the same type involved in the Feb. 20 incident, suffered engine failure over the Pacific near Hawaii, after a fan blade fractured, according to an NTSB report released last June.
After showering the Denver suburb of Broomfield with debris, the United Airlines flight returned to the Denver airport with no reported injuries. The plane was equipped with two Pratt & Whitney PW4000engines.
Eachofthemishapsendedinsafelandings. The National Transportation Safety Board said in early March the right engine fire damage was primarily contained to the accessory components, thrust reverser skin and composite honeycomb structure of the inboard and outboard thrust reversers.
A valve that stops fuel flow to the engine when the fire switch is pulled in the cockpit, wasfoundclosed. Noevidenceofafirefedby fuel was found.
All fan blade roots were in place in the fan hubandtwobladeswerefractured. Thefracture surface was consistent with indications it was worn out.
Analysts have said the engine failures would not have a negative impact on Pratt & Whitney or Raytheon Technologies. The problem is “almost certainly a maintenance issue, not a design issue,” aviation analyst Richard Aboulavia of the Teal Group said in February.
Cowen analyst Cai von Rumohr said in February the engine failure is “probably not a major negative” for Raytheon. Boeing 777s powered by PW4000 engines represent just 8% of the total 777 fleet, he said.