QF A380's Grounded by fungus in fuel

[positivegee]

I just saw this story on Ten News tonight. It sounds a little phoney to me. Can anyone verify?

If it's true, it'll be a huge pain in the butt for QF.

[hadagutfull]

Big deal.... change some filters and give the fuel tanks a treatment....
Nothing new here.....

[Aussie]

Anyone know where the contaminated fuel came from? Mascot??? Or over in the US?

[Jabawocky]

Aussie

Its may not be contaminated fuel. I imagine that Jet Fuel may have some bug killing additives, but maybe not! Its been a long known problem, mainly in the marine environment where you get condensation in tanks.

When the H2O settles into a nice dark corner and not disturbed too often these little bugs have a very comfy home and breed faster than rabbits!:ooh: Diesel suffers far more than petrol and I would say Jet fuel also, as its not that much different!

Over time the water may be disturbed and the fungus has grown, then it gets killed off by the fuel, the fungud falls off the wall like a ... well a bit of a mushroom corossed with silicone, and makes a great fuel line and filter blocker. Albeit you need a lot of it. You would swear someone had gone mad with a silicone tube, but its not at all.

Now exactly what you get in the wing of an airliner, I can not say first hand but it would be quite likely its very similar.

J

[lowerlobe]

It would be a problem if you had an aircraft designed to run on the new environmentally friendly fuel made from fromage......:E

This mornings news ( if you can believe them ) said that three QF A-380's are grounded with a fuel problem....

I wonder if this might mean....des compensations financières substantielles

[flying-spike]

http://www.casa.gov.au/fsa/2005/oct/50-51.pdf

[Short_Circuit]

Is there a camera approved for use in a fuel tank?:eek:

[Ngineer]

Does'nt the A380 have a procedure to carry out fuel drains frequently?

[Ken Borough]

ABC Radio News has just reported that after grounding, all three A380 are now back in the air, having been "fixed". There was a grab from an official of the LAME's union congratulating the Company for having reacted so positively. There was not however any mention of flying pigs!!

[hotnhigh]

As Richie would say..."Henri, What le fungus?"

[Joker 10]

In the late 60's the wing tanks on the C 130 A models all had clostridium (sic) growing in them which ate its way through the Alloy tank structure causing major repairs to be taken by the whole fleet.

Microbiological ( sometimes called fungal ) contamination is not to be laughed about.

[QF DRIVE]

Press reports A380's grounded due fuel leaks.

[C441]

When Australian Airlines kicked off in Cairns a while back they had a similar problem perhaps as a result of the humid conditions. At a meeting at the time a senior person from up that way described it as a dose of "tank clap" :cool:

[positivegee]

"QF DRIVE Press reports A380's grounded due fuel leaks."

Yes QFD, from all reports it looks like a fuel leakage issue...the fungus might have been from the fun gas the reporter was on!:confused:

[Buster Hyman]

Nice to see Qantas has grown a little culture....:E

[Shlonghaul]

Nice to see Qantas has grown a little culture

Good one Buster! :ok: :D :D ....... I thought it would have taken much longer for culture to return to Qantas after Darth left :E

[ron burgandy]

:}Never buy the A model of anything.......................................

[Captain Sherm]

Well its hardly the "A" model. First flew nearly 4 years ago and been in service for well over a year.

And of all the types that have been introduced in modern times I would have thought that a fuel fungus was fairly low down the list of gremlins (and worse!)


Comets managed a number of accidents til they were rebuilt.

Electras had to be ferried back to the US to have the wings reskinned after a few wing separations

Boeing 727s had several accidents due inability to handle high sink rates on approach

First -100 series 747 rarely got across the Atlantic with all engines running

Douglas test pilots broke an MD-80 in half during the landing tests


In fact I think the 777 was probably the closest we've yet seen to a flawless EIS and even that wasn't perfect.

This A380 will be a great machine for QF and this is simply a hiccup on that road. Nothing more.

[Wod]

QF has cultural form.

My dodgy memory has a 747 classic flying Bahrain-Heathrow long, long ago, and starving one engine of fuel at top Of Descent and a second (same side) on long finals.

Ultimate source deemed to be sea water in Bahrain fuel causing goo formation.

(What was the old joke as engines failed one by one - "At this rate we'll be up here forever")

Hopefully someone with more confidence in their memory will correct me if I'm wrong.

[sthaussiepilot]

At a meeting at the time a senior person from up that way described it as a dose of "tank clap

:D:ok: Hahaha

So QF has managed to catch the aircraft STD?:}

On a serious note,

So far what has been the issues on the A380 since entering service?

Steering Problems, Fuel, and I heard something on a cargo door on a few of them? :confused: anything else so far?

[HotDog]

anything else so far?

Yes accolades from the paying customers. Get over it fellows, all new aircraft have teething problems. All three QF A380s have been cleared to operate.

[Grogmonster]

Gents,

If it is a fungus problem there is a product on the market called "Biobor JF" that will sovle the problem although last time I checked the price it was a bit silvery. I imagine the volume needed to sort out an A380 would cost the equivalent of a nice new car.

[Eastwest Loco]

Having been priveleged enough to ride the first ever QF International passenger flight (No it was NOT MEL LAX, it was QF6601 09OCT SYD AKL) I can say that the aeroplane is simply bloody amazing.

I hope they sort the minor Chuck Yaegerisms (ie: Never fly the A model of anything) as the girls are amazing.

There is at least a 6 month curve with things never enviseaged in manufature or testing that will be found out by extended high altitude ops, and these will be sorted as they come up. Time cures all ills.

I was amazed at Sunday School just over the Cul de Sac 5 or 6 weeks ago after hearing the rumble to look up and see one of the girls laying 4 contrails on track to Hobart. Crystal clear sky and it was quite easy to see it was a 380 and compared to the 73's and A320 looked huge. I did dip me hat and raise me VB to her as she rumbled gently over. The cricket was on in HBA, but no flyby. Must have just turned over HBA and headed back up the Northbound track on training.

QF had the good sense to cop the flak and expense of grounding the three to err on the side of safety. Good effort that!

It is good to see they have not outsourced common sense.

Go you good big things you!!!

Best all

EWL

[Capt Claret]

With such a complex piece of machinery, comprising so many parts, and so many km of electrical wizardry, and, the length of time taken from inception to delivery, including flight testing, one doesn't know whether to be surprised that there aren't more problems, or, that there are as many as there will be.

The mind boggles, it does. :8

[B043]

Thanks to good old QF, VA now have two totally full flights :ok:

[QF DRIVE]

VB offered staff a $400.00 return fare on VA inaugural to make it look full. I hear quite a few took it up.

[somewhereat1l]

$375 - our staff travel rate

[Gargleblaster]

Re "...and so many km of electrical wizardry..."

Makes me think of an AC mechanic that told me that Airbusses are dimensioned in inches, which makes me worry about the safety of the darn things.

Whatif an engineer in Toulouse made an error adding 15/72" to 17/48" and now that fuel hose is 7/144" too short and will fall of in mid flight with fuel guzzling out of the altimeter and onto the the captain's cigar ?

[Capt Claret]

Gargleblaster

Before your post, I'd have put money on the US products being dimensioned in inches, as opposed to Airbus products. Lucky I didn't bet the house! :}

[43Inches]

I would bet on Airbus being metric (but could be wrong),

which makes me worry about the safety of the darn things.


Why would you worry about the safety of an established manufacturer? Airbus did not start building aircraft at the A380. A lot of negative comment has been made at the small problems the newer airbus aircraft have had, which have caused delays etc.. The worst airbus accidents have been caused by pilot integration (CFIT), not the aircraft itself. If you look at boeing however we have had a 777 loose power on short final (no birds involved), spontanious ignition of fuel tanks (747 and 737) sudden rudder hardover in the cruise (numerous 737) random engine shut down in flight(717) and the list goes on.

I'm not anti Boeing or pro Airbus, both companies are about level in the overall accident rate for late madel aircraft.

[Ngineer]

a fungus problem

Its just one big flying tub of Yoplait. (thats french for yogurt).

[LM82]

:D:D:D
thats classic

a bit pedantic i know but didnt the ad used to say 'french for yum'?

funny none the less

[lowerlobe]

Yes Ngineer but.....Is that Yoplait measured in pints or litres?

If the tub is metric and the lid is not then some yoplait might leak out....:E

That's what happens when the lid is made in the UK,the tub in Germany and the Yoghurt is made in France.....:E:E:E

[Jabawocky]

I guess that makes the A319 a "Petite Yum" :}

[oil additive]

I thought yoghurt was supposed to cure fungal complaints? :\

Hmmm, I wonder whether Canestan cream is an approved product in the Airbus AMM???