Qantas A380 Engine Failure

[Foxtrot]

Video on Youtube as well:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P-qcxL8Hp00

[Andreas Fast]

Via Yahoo News







More pictures

http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/Qantas-jumbo-makes-emergency-landing/ss/events/wl/110410qantas/im:/101104/481/urn_publicid_ap_org_f7d72a4205164e8f827bf089049655ab/#photoViewer=/101104/481/urn_publicid_ap_org_f7d72a4205164e8f827bf089049655ab

[mawheatley]

Good coverage here: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/nati...-1225948047085

Looks like their counting out bird strike already.

[Evan]

More pictures

How close did that come to a fuel tank?!

[Gabriel]

How close did that come to a fuel tank?!

Through. (looks like)

[MCM]

My guess is if it was through a fuel tank we'd have known a lot more about it. There are a lot of non-fuel related areas on the forward side of the wing, including in some aircraft dry-bays for this very reason.

I have heard that where it happened was right over a volcano that is currently erupting. That would be my guess why it occured. If this is the case the problem is why are planes not being diverted around erupting volcano's?

What a complete load of crap.

No volcano there, no eruption, no volcano related damage.

[larsv]

didn't they use that self sealing stuff for the fuel tanks?

[AVION1]

The indonesia police found some parts in Indonesia..!!!
Take a look at picture number 9, looks like some parts from the rudder..

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/11/04/indonesia.plane.emergency/index.html?hpt=T1

[Bryan]

The indonesia police found some parts in Indonesia..!!!
Take a look at picture number 9, looks like some parts from the rudder..

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapc...ex.html?hpt=T1

Indonesia is all around Singapore, which sits at the southern tip of Malaysia, that debris is along the flight path, no biggie there.

the piece looks to be to be the trailing edge of the missing cowling that came off No. 2. that most definitely is not rudder.

[Evan]

My guess is if it was through a fuel tank we'd have known a lot more about it. There are a lot of non-fuel related areas on the forward side of the wing, including in some aircraft dry-bays for this very reason.

This diagram is more accurate, direct from Airbus. Looks like it came damn close though.

[Spectator]

The indonesia police found some parts in Indonesia..!!!
Take a look at picture number 9, looks like some parts from the rudder..

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapc...ex.html?hpt=T1

The gallery link under "related coverage" on maweatly's link show plenty of bits being recovered in Indonesia, and as someone pointed out it is to be expected that debris was found in Indo... debris in Singapore would have been like a precision bombing run. Well not quite, but you get the idea.

Good coverage here: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/nati...-1225948047085

[yeti]

Sounds like it was a contained failure NOT uncontained. An uncontained failure would mean that debris would have exploded out of the engine casing sideways and caused failure to the adjacent structures. The debris looks like it came out of the rear of the engine. Other damage at the rear looks to be caused by heat.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11691197

Looks like a very big worry for Rolls-Royce though. There were no reports of bird strikes but it's very early.

OK, I'm going to have to eat my hat now....this is me eating my hat...
It looks like the failure was not contained as there is damage on the wing:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11692478

So this looks like a doublewhammyy for RR at the moment. Catastrophic engine failure which was uncontained. Thats not good for a new engine type.

[guamainiac]

That was the first reaction when a crash was announced. That logo is usually or rudder of fuselage.

In the case of a 380 the rudder logo would dwarf any people; it is from the failed nacelle.

Is the engine nacelle made of aluminum alloy or composite. My first impression is that it has the same appearance as a beer can tossed in the fire. Looking at the photos however, the color of what I think is the nacelle is a blackish almost carbon fiber colored material. They would probably burn the same?

[guamainiac]

If the US NTSB defines "contained" as staying in the engine and exiting the tailpipe with no immediate flight risk.

This is a "dance between the raindrops" scenario?

Was it an immediate flight risk? With "whatever it is" exiting the tailpipe is chewing up the tailpipe and then starting to eat at the nacelle is a bit too close for me.

Is this another case of technology and definitions chasing each other across a time warp? The tailpipe of the 380 is pretty short and does not extend very far from even mid point of the wing does it?

Now according to the video, the hole in the wing is getting larger. Now this is an Airbus and in a Boeing that would be an .. where is Evan to explain how the hole in an Airbus wing is a simple aerodynamic phenomena while in a Boeing it would present clear and present danger.

[justLOT787]

Similar things have happened before like the 1980 and 1987 LOT crashes and 1989 United crash that were fatal cause was the engine turbine exploiting and disabling the planes even QANTAS not to long ago in LAX had a similar problem with the 747. The plane took off and the low pressure turbine exploded!