I work for BA at Cardiff and am happy to tell you that the recent influx of engine changes has nothing to do with engine problems - BA are switching from 'their' age-old maintenance programme (loosely designed around the 747 'classic' maintenance programme, and never really well suited to the -400) to the Boeing standard MPD (Maintenance Planning Document) checks. The MPD has different intervals for planned maintenance to the BA old style checks. Maintrol in London are planning inputs to BAMC to coordinate two to three suitable 747-400 to align each one with its MPD. This involves lots of what seems like pointless ******ing about i.e. swapping aircraft from Hi-J to Low-J (70 business seats to 38) and vice-versa, swapping engines like you would not believe (to align them for scheduled engine changes when the aircraft is in the hangar for maintenance anyway on a C or D check). Then coordinate this with 'Heavy' and 'Lite' aircraft(fuel in stab tank or not, and extended upper crew rest area) added to G or H rated engines as WELL as Heathrow or Gatwick based aircraft (not necessarily true now that the -400 is operated for LHR, but certainly true for the 777s) and you will see that it is a logistical knightmare.
As for the 'gliders' I can honestly say in 7 years at BAMC, all aircraft that I have met on arrival have NEVER had any reports from the flight crew, nor tech log inputs about engine shutdowns/failures, and believe me I have seen a huge amount of them in. I also have a friend who works for GEAES in Nantgarw South Wales where ALL the RB211's are maintained to name only one type, he and I are avid enthusiasts of what we do and a 'sensational' story like this would almost certainly have come up in conversation.
Agreed this is a 'rumours' forum by definition, but lets not give the media anything to bite onto with at least any form of definite proof
