The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered an immediate inspection of Boeing 777 aircraft with Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines after a United States aircraft engine burst into flames.
The engine is used on 128 older versions of the jet, accounting for less than 10 percent of the more than 1,600 777 delivered, Reuters reported.
Reportedly, only a few airlines operated them in the US, South Korea and Japan recently.
The FAA stated that large thermal titanium fan blades on carrier engines should undergo a thermal acoustic image inspection.
The agency stated, “Based on preliminary results, as we obtain them, as well as other data obtained from ongoing investigations, the FAA may modify this directive.
Boeing said it supports the FAA’s inspection guidance and will work through the process with its customers.
National Transportation Safety Board President Robert Sumwal said on Monday that preliminary assessments showed that damage to a fan blade in a failed joint engine is consistent with metal fatigue.
A spokesman for Pratt, owned by Reuters Technologies, said the fan blades would have to be shipped to their repair facility in East Hartford, Connecticut, for the latest inspections, Reuters reported.
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