Originally Posted by
Chris Scott
Guess you meant the fin attachment? I agree that losing an engine pod in flight is one thing; losing the whole vertical-stabiliser a show-stopper. In which case the damage to the rear fuselage of the A321 is likely to be substantial, and I wonder if the whole fuselage may be compromised.
Not sure about that. The fin structure is designed to take aerodynamic loads across the entire surface, not side on impact loads concentrated in a very small area. I would suspect that the attachment fittings on the fuselage will be NDT very closely and measured for distortion and if all OK a new fin fitted, flight test carried out and repeat NDT on the support castings on a schedule agreed with Airbus.