by: Steve Creedy, Aviation writer
From:
The Australian
January 04, 201212:00AM
THE Qantas Airbus A380 superjumbo crippled by an engine explosion near Singapore in late 2010 should be back in service by March after $135 million in repairs.
The November explosion of the Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engine sent shrapnel ripping through the Nancy-Bird Walton, damaging vital structural components, puncturing fuel tanks, severing wiring and cutting hydraulic lines.
The fact the giant plane landed safely in Singapore was testament to the skill of the Qantas pilots and the aircraft's robust design.
Qantas originally hoped that the plane would be repaired by the end of last year and estimated it would cost about $100m. The cost of repairs is covered by insurance and compares to an average list price of an A380 of about $US375m ($364m), although discounts mean Qantas will have paid significantly less.
The decision to repair or write off an aircraft is ultimately taken by the insurer, as was the case with the $100m repair job on a Boeing 747-400 that left the runway in Bangkok in 1999. The airline last lost a plane, a Lockheed Super Constellation, in Mauritius in 1960.
Repairs on the A380 began in Singapore in May. Most of the repair work is being performed by manufacturer Airbus with a team of up to 40 people supported by Qantas and Singapore International Airlines Engineering Company staff.
All the original engines have been removed and replaced with new ones from Rolls-Royce.
The repair will be certified by Airbus and the aircraft will be returned to service by Qantas engineers after rigorous testing.
The work is also being audited by airworthiness authorities, who have been briefed regularly on the progress of the repairs.
Qantas has 12 A380s in its fleet, and a spokesman said steps had been taken to ensure a similar engine explosion could not happen again.
The repair costs are in addition to the $80m it cost to ground the A380 fleet after the engine explosion that was traced to manufacturing fault in an oil tube. Rolls-Royce covered the cost of the grounding and brand damage to the airline with a $95m compensation payment.