"Slight Anomalies" Found In Some Engines

Qantas said Monday that it has not yet cleared its A380s to fly after some "slight anomalies" were discovered during an inspection of the aircrafts' engines. One of the Airline's Airbus superjumbos experienced and engine blow-out last week, followed by a similar problem with a different engine on a Qantas 747. Both flights had originated in Singapore.

File Photo

The international news service AFP reports that the problems were detected on three engines in the fleet. Qantas CEO Alan Joyce said in an interview with Australian broadcaster ABC that mechanics found "oil where oil shouldn't be" on three of the Rolls-Royce engines which power the jet. The discovery is delaying the A380's return to service for Qantas by "several days."

Joyce said when the A380 incident occurred that he believed the problem was potentially a design flaw in the new Rolls-Royce engine on the superjumbo. He said the grounding would be in effect until the airline could ensure safe operation of the jets. Airline executives are strongly denying union claims that the problems stem from the outsourcing of maintenance work to companies outside Australia.

Other airlines operating A380s with the Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines inspected their fleets following last week's Qantas incident, but Reuters reports that both Singapore Airlines and Lufthansa said they found nothing of concern during those inspections.

FMI: www.qantas.com. www.rolls-royce.com