FAA Yet To Determine Root Cause Of Airbus A380 Fan-Blade Fracture Written 7 January 2020

FlightGlobal reports that the FAA has “yet to establish the root cause of a fan-blade fracture involved in an engine failure affecting an Air France Airbus A380.” In a directive, the FAA indicates that “after an analysis of these fractures, the manufacturer determined the fan blades experienced cracks that originated on the internal surface of the convex airfoil and propagated to the point of failure.” However, the reason was “still undetermined.” Carriers with “GP7200-powered A380s with certain blades fitted are being instructed to conduct ultrasonic inspections and replace any blades which fail the check. Blades which have undertaken 3,250 cycles or more since new must be checked within 250 cycles.”
Full Story (FlightGlobal)