Cathay Pacific Emergency Landing

[Matt Coughran]

HONG KONG—Eight people were injured Tuesday when a Cathay Pacific Airways jet made an emergency landing in Hong Kong after experiencing engine problems, in one of the carrier's most serious incidents in recent years involving safety.

Hong Kong's Civil Aviation Department and Cathay Pacific officials offered few details on the cause of the incident pending an investigation. Cathay Pacific Chief Executive Tony Tyler did say the Airbus A330-300 aircraft, which was carrying 309 passengers and 13 crew members, encountered engine trouble as it approached the city's airport on a flight from Surabaya, Indonesia.

The airline, which is based in Hong Kong, said in a statement that the jet's left-hand engine shut down as the aircraft made its landing approach. The other engine was functioning, according to the statement.

When flight CX780 landed, a small fire broke out on its main landing gear that was quickly extinguished by fire services. The fire was likely caused by tires overheating when the pilots executed the plane's emergency braking system, the government's aviation department said.

The crew deployed emergency slides to evacuate passengers on the runway. Authorities said the eight passengers sent to hospital suffered injuries to the legs, arms and head that were likely caused during the evacuation process.

"At the moment, it is far too early to speculate on the causes of this incident, and we will of course act on anything we need to make sure our fleet remains the safest fleet in the air," Mr. Tyler said at a news conference. He declined to say whether the airline would suspend its A330 aircraft from service.

Mr. Tyler said the Airbus aircraft involved joined Cathay Pacific's fleet in 1998 and last underwent a full maintenance overhaul in October 2008. Cathay Pacific has more than 30 A330s in service, operating mainly on regional and Australian flights. The A330 first entered service with the airline in 1995.

Cathay Pacific has enjoyed a solid safety record in recent years. However, the latest incident wasn't the first time the airline has experienced a problem with its A330 aircraft.

In 1997, Cathay Pacific grounded its entire fleet of A330s for nearly two weeks because of problems with the planes' Rolls-Royce Trent 700 engines. Trouble with the gearboxes of the Rolls-Royce engines caused some in-flight engine shutdowns, prompting the carrier to take the aircraft out of service for immediate modifications.

Hong Kong's Civil Aviation Department said it will launch a full inquiry into the incident and said it will invite French and U.K. air-crash investigators to join the probe. The Airbus aircraft was manufactured in France, while its Rolls-Royce engines were made in the U.K.

The government said Hong Kong's airport suffered little disruption from the incident, with 35 flights being delayed by fewer than 30 minutes.
Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303695604575181442948586112.html?m od=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLTopStories

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/hs442.snc3/25367_410812251042_738501042_5695392_5069374_n.jpg Photo Taken by Thomas Kwan

Rego: B-HLL

[Andrew M]

Media now reporting that both engines failed before landing!

"Cathay Pacific said in a statement the plane's left engine had shut down as the aircraft made its landing approach at Hong Kong's international airport yesterday with 309 passengers on a flight from Surabaya in Indonesia.

The right engine also began to "cut out inexplicably, leaving the (pilots) to cope with dips and surges in power and the prospect of the plane plunging into the sea short of (the airport)," the South China Morning Post reported"

http://www.theage.com.au/travel/travel-news/australian-pilots-hailed-as-heroes-after-airliner-engine-failure-20100414-sd3g.html



Hmmm another A330 computer malfunction ? Very interested to see the final report on this one!

[Lee G]

Why deplane all the passengers via the slides? I would have thought that keeping then on board and disembarking by steps brought to the aircraft would have been safer even with blown tyres on the main gear?

[Ryan N]

Seven News mentioned the pilots were Australians.

[Raymond Rowe]

Glad that they made it ok.Does anyone know the rego please.

[D Chan]

B-HLL is the aircraft involved. Reports that the engines surged seem to indicate an engine problem or possible fuel contamination problem. Don't want to speculate the cause but this has the potential to be a Trent issue again.

Evacuation is ordered probably because of the brake fire?

[Brian Hoy]

I think the most accurate report is on The Aviation Herald, for those of you who don't have it already. www.avherald.com./ And I think all those Aviation reporters out there who seem to snoop around this site looking for "quotes" when anything happens in aviation should also add that site to your bookmarks and check it daily and get an idea what happens to other airlines around the world and not just QANTAS. Imagine the headlines if this had been a QF bird.

[Tim Bowrey]

Does anyone know the rego please.

B-HLL according to The Hong Kong Spotters forum.

[Raymond Rowe]

Thanks guys.

[Jethro H]

CX own website is a good source what happened. Basically LH engine stuck at 70% hence a 230Kt touch down. The claims of RH shut down appears to be from people on board, who could hear it being rolled back, but only because they were trying to compensate the power.

http://www.cathaypacific.com/cpa/en_INTL/aboutus/pressroomdetails?refID=b4d6b987a8bf7210VgnVCM62000 007d21c39____
Cathay Pacific updates CX780 incident
14 April 2010

Cathay Pacific today emphasized that at no time were both engines on CX780 from Surabaya, which made an emergency landing at Hong Kong International Airport yesterday, shut down.

At a press briefing, Dennis Hui Manager Maintenance Support at the airline’s Engineering Department emphasised that safety is always the airline’s number one priority. He said that after further investigation of the flight data from CX780 and having interviewed the crew, updated information had shown a clear picture of this aspect of the incident.

He said it had been determined that the number 2 (RH) engine was at idle power throughout the approach and landing at HKIA, and the Number 1(LH) engine was operating at 70 per cent of its maximum power, and frozen at that level.

Mr. Hui said: “This is a higher power setting than is required for a normal approach with a single operating engine. Consequently, this higher than normal power setting led to a higher than normal approach speed and incorrect flap configuration.

“The aircraft therefore touched down at approx 230 knots, as against a normal 135 knots at this aircraft’s operating weight.

“ However, the aircraft touched down on the correct position on the runway, but due to its high speed had to brake hard and use reverse thrust from the operating engine to bring the aircraft to a halt.

“The high speed and high energy braking led to very hot brakes, tyre deflation and the report from the FSD outside the aircraft that it had observed flames and smoke on the landing gear,” he added.

Mr. Hui said details of what happened and what caused the engine malfunction are now the subject of CAD investigations. Cathay Pacific was co-operating closely with the investigation, along with Airbus and Rolls Royce, the engine supplier.

At the same briefing, Quince Chong Director Corporate Affairs emphasized that no decision could be taken before touchdown on evacuation, until the aircraft safely landed and the commander was in the best position to assess the situation.

Once the pilots were told by the Fire Services Department that they had seen flames and smoke in the undercarriage, they decided to deplane the passengers and immediately alerted the cabin crew to begin the evacuation procedure.

Ms Chong praised the professionalism of the cockpit and cabin crews for their handling of the incident.

She said the cabin crew had assisted all the passengers out of the aircraft, and made sure all were safely deplaned before leaving themselves. Then the Captain and First Officer walked the entire length of the plane to ensure all were safely evacuated before leaving themselves.

She said the evacuation had taken just two minutes.

Ms Chong said: “The pilots and the 11 cabin crew all demonstrated professionalism of a highest order in handling a most testing situation. It was due to their training, professionalism, their judgment, and ability to perform multi-tasks under a highly intense situation that the injuries had been kept to a minimum.”

She said that Cathay Pacific had mobilized 40 department heads to operate the Crisis Management Centre and deployed 50 members of a “care team”, including Indonesian speakers, to accompany injured passengers to hospital and assist the others with their baggage and connecting flights.

The company was now offering to refund all passengers tickets and offer them a free regional flight.

Gosh, there were a lot of rumours on other forums around the world!

[Nigel C]

Yep, and people here wonder how the media get it so wrong when they report it...:confused:

[Andrew P]

an update

A Cathay Pacific aircraft forced to make an emergency landing in Hong Kong used Indonesian- supplied fuel that was contaminated, according to investigators.

Fine spherical particles were found in the engine fuel components, the engine fuel system and aircraft fuel tanks, according to a bulletin yesterday from the Accident Investigation Division of the Civil Aviation Department.

"Examination and analysis indicated that those spheres could not have been generated from within the aircraft airframe or engine systems under normal operating conditions and environment," the bulletin said.

Cathay Flight 780 had pumped 24,400 kilograms of fuel at Juanda International Airport in Surabaya, Indonesia, before taking off for Hong Kong, the report said.

Before the Cathay incident, there had been extension work performed to the hydrant refueling circuit as part of Juanda airport's apron extension project. A subsequent investigation at the Indonesian airport found that some of the recommissioning procedures were not in line with industry guidelines and practices.

The hydrant refueling system was used for the Cathay aircraft before the completion of the recommissioning procedures, the report said. Flight CX780 declared a Mayday on approaching Hong Kong International Airport on April 13, with one engine stalled and the other with only 70 percent power.

The emergency landing injured 57 passengers, 10 of whom were sent to hospitals. Six tires were blown out.

The report recommended that Juanda airport authorities conduct an extensive review of the re- commissioning procedures and ensure the procedures are completed before resuming hydrant refueling at the airport.

The investigation aims to identify the cause of the loss of thrust control which led to the emergency landing of the Airbus SAS A330.

The second bulletin issued yesterday came three months after the investigation team issued its preliminary report in May. Cathay Pacific said in a separate statement no faults were found with the aircraft or engine control systems.

The Civil Aviation Department, in conjunction with the Air Accident Investigation Branch of the United Kingdom, the French civil aviation safety bureau and the US National Transportation Safety Board, will continue the investigation with the support of Airbus, Rolls-Royce and Cathay Pacific Airways

[Adam.S]

Why deplane all the passengers via the slides? I would have thought that keeping then on board and disembarking by steps brought to the aircraft would have been safer even with blown tyres on the main gear?

I second this question. I understand there is written procedure that crews must follow and 2mins to evacuate 309 pax is a great effort by the CX crew.
However with firecrews present, was there really a concern that the flaming brakes could ignite the fuel tanks?
I would have thought 2 or 3 fire tanks on the scene could have put out all fires very quickly, even if every wheel of the a/c was on fire?

I obviously don't have much of an understanding of the fire risks, so I ask here seeking knowledge.

cheers

[D Chan]

I second this question. I understand there is written procedure that crews must follow and 2mins to evacuate 309 pax is a great effort by the CX crew.
However with firecrews present, was there really a concern that the flaming brakes could ignite the fuel tanks?
I would have thought 2 or 3 fire tanks on the scene could have put out all fires very quickly, even if every wheel of the a/c was on fire?

I obviously don't have much of an understanding of the fire risks, so I ask here seeking knowledge.

cheers

flaming brakes could trigger the following,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRzWp67PIMw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UocxPoUUnIQ

if the landing speed is so high a lot of energy would have been converted into heat with the brakes.
Notice the fire doesn't start until 3 or 4 minutes after the heavy braking

[Owen H]

This crew had just done a VERY high energy stop (far in excess of any considered scenarios for the aircraft) having lost control of both engines during various stages.

I think we should forgive them a decision to evacuate the aircraft given they had no idea why they had the failures they did, and that they had put far more energy into the brakes than any test ever has, including the ones resulting in wheel fires.

The jury is still out on whether it is a good idea to evacuate or not in a brake fire scenario. Yes, the fire crew will be on hand, but have a read of what the fire crew's job actually is... you might be surprised. The purpose is to protect a safe evacuation route for passengers from an aircraft, not to put out fires. That is a secondary role.