SWA1380 - diversion to KPHL after engine event
To achieve certification the engine must pass a 'blade off' test. The engine casing immediately surrounding the fan must be capable of containing the rogue blade. Kevlar is used on some. In the pictures above of this incident, the fan case is intact (or at least looks so). The fan inlet cowl however is severly damaged and largely missing. It is not designed to withstand a thrown fan blade.
You tube has a few videos of engine blade off tests.
You tube has a few videos of engine blade off tests.
The engine must demonstrate that it can withstand the intentional loss of a single blade and its consequences (e.g multiple blades in a domino affect, imbalance and/or seizure forces and fire and explosions).
The engine is normally defined by its front and rear flanges and as-shipped accessories.
Under the oversight of, continued airworthiness, corrective action against a demonstrated threat to safety need be addressed (could be at the engine level or the aircraft level)
I have doubts that blade parts took out that window
At this point, I have not seen enough of what's going on at the bottom of the engine that might have affected the cowl latches.
The engine is normally defined by its front and rear flanges and as-shipped accessories.
Under the oversight of, continued airworthiness, corrective action against a demonstrated threat to safety need be addressed (could be at the engine level or the aircraft level)
I have doubts that blade parts took out that window
At this point, I have not seen enough of what's going on at the bottom of the engine that might have affected the cowl latches.
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For most of the passengers on that flight - there was an explosion outside - and it appears as though bits of the outside came inside - injuring several passengers. I'm sure there were some horrid sounds associated with the event, coupled with the masks dropping, the aircraft "dropping" and a passenger being sucked out of the plane (or whatever actually happened). It is the stuff of movies.
Certainly better of you to think you'd be a smooth operator in any given emergency - and not fumbling for a clean set of drawers.
There's really nothing funny about what happened - and, sorry, but I don't fault the passengers for putting that ridiculously-sized mask on incorrectly. Folks panicked . . . give them a bit of a break.
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This is the best image I've found of the engine. I've given it some mild enhancement. The damage pattern is... interesting. The fan looks substantially intact, or at least not completely disrupted - but the engine forward of the fan looks completely munted. It looks almost as if (note, as if, not saying that actually happened!) it hit something fairly substantial, but didn't ingest it.
Any thoughts on what could cause that damage? The other thing it looks kinda like is the 'explosive' damage you might expect from something like a compressor surge on steroids - you know the really loud BANG type with flames out the front of the engine; like that but something worse.
Interestingly, Southwest 438 back in 2007 was determined to be "...due to the No. 2 engine experiencing a release of its fan spinner through the fan cowl as a result of an unidentified object striking the spinner, separating it from the fan disk and causing the spinner to be ingested into the fan blades."
Damage in that incident: severe to fan, much less to cowling:
EDIT for clarification: above is engine from Southwest 438 in 2007; below is today's failure:
Any thoughts on what could cause that damage? The other thing it looks kinda like is the 'explosive' damage you might expect from something like a compressor surge on steroids - you know the really loud BANG type with flames out the front of the engine; like that but something worse.
Interestingly, Southwest 438 back in 2007 was determined to be "...due to the No. 2 engine experiencing a release of its fan spinner through the fan cowl as a result of an unidentified object striking the spinner, separating it from the fan disk and causing the spinner to be ingested into the fan blades."
Damage in that incident: severe to fan, much less to cowling:
EDIT for clarification: above is engine from Southwest 438 in 2007; below is today's failure:
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Looking at the available pictures I would agree. I would suggest it is more likely that the outboard fan cowl flipped up and exited over the top of the wing and caught the window at 15A on its way past. Not nice for the pax sitting in that seat judging by the amount of blood on the outside of the fuselage.
1) Released/broken blades are not considered 'infinite energy' - engines are certified to contain blade failures - fan blades by the fan case containment ring (used to always be steel - many newer engines use Kevlar). Compressor and turbine blades are contained by the engine case (nearly always steel). Fan blades can and do initially move forward when released - remember they are basically pulling the aircraft forward so there is a significant forward force vector on the blade. The fan case containment ring extends well ahead of the fan to account for that but it's certainly not uncommon for fan debris to damage the inlet forward of the fan case.
2) Burst engine discs are considered 'infinite energy' and are allowed to be uncontained since sufficient shielding would be impractical (they are also not supposed to ever happen). The Iowa City DC-10 was a burst fan disc, the Qantas A380 was a burst turbine disc.
This event does not appear to be a burst disc.
3)The fan inlet cowl is not intended to contain engine parts - the fan case does that. It's purpose is purely aerodynamic (to provide 'clean' airflow to the fan face and a smooth aerodynamic surface around the engine) along with acoustic treatment to suppress fan noise. However it's not supposed to fail due to the forces of a fan blade out - and they are designed to contend with the forces associated with a fan blade out event. I'm sure the NTSB, FAA, and Boeing are all concerned that there have been recent fan blade out events where the inlet departed the aircraft.
4) The preliminary report on the 2016 Southwest fan blade out event attributed the release to metal fatigue, and the fan blade inspection requirements were supposed to updated to address that failure.
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fan detail image
New images on twitter: https://twitter.com/NTSB_Newsroom
Looks awfully like a missing fan blade in the elbow/forearm area...
Looks awfully like a missing fan blade in the elbow/forearm area...
Injured pax was reportedly seated in 14A which, as already noted, is just forward of the wing trailing edge.
That, and the indications that whatever penetrated the cabin was travelling at an angle and not tangentially, would suggest that it wasn't a liberated fan or turbine blade.
That, and the indications that whatever penetrated the cabin was travelling at an angle and not tangentially, would suggest that it wasn't a liberated fan or turbine blade.
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Tragic though the loss of one passenger is (RIP), it does demonstrate just how spectacularly safe flying by jet transport (in the USA at least) has become.
Since 2009 you would be more likely to win the lottery twice than to perish in a jet transport incident.
Hold that thought.
Since 2009 you would be more likely to win the lottery twice than to perish in a jet transport incident.
Hold that thought.
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Too early to tell if the blown window caused the major trauma or anything after that, so a seatbelt might not have made a difference. They'll be talking about this one for years.
tdracer
There's nothing special about the behaviour of a CF56 fan blade, yet given that there is a fan blade release the B737 inlet cowls have more damage than most other cowls on Boeing aircraft.
It shouldn't be difficult to address
it's not supposed to fail due to the forces of a fan blade out - and they are designed to contend with the forces associated with a fan blade out event. I'm sure the NTSB, FAA, and Boeing are all concerned that there have been recent fan blade out events where the inlet departed the aircraft.
It shouldn't be difficult to address
Hopefully this isn't 'fake news' - story about the Southwest pilot during the event:
https://heavy.com/news/2018/04/tammi...0-engine-hero/
Not quite Sully territory, but a job well done none the less.
https://heavy.com/news/2018/04/tammi...0-engine-hero/
Not quite Sully territory, but a job well done none the less.
Anyone else find reports that the cabin staff were trying to plug the hole odd? There would be bugger all items in the cabin with anywhere near the structural strength to do that - and items being fed through the hole could have snagged.
That seems strange...
That seems strange...
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In an interview on CBC Radio, the passenger Martinez said that the unfortunate lady in the seat next to the window did have her seatbelt on. He said that a male passenger forward of her seat came back and was the main individual engaged in restraining her from being sucked out.
UA1175 emergency landing Honolulu
BTW that photo posted by infrequentflyer shows surprising little damage to the surrounding blades. Interesting...
The procedure is usually used when you have a faulty door seal and getting noise from it not for plugging a hole. Confusion perhaps?
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The 7 minute CBC Radio interview with Marty Martinez can be heard via the following URL. 'This plane is going down': Passenger describes moments leading up to emergency landing | CBC Radio
Hopefully this isn't 'fake news' - story about the Southwest pilot during the event:
https://heavy.com/news/2018/04/tammi...0-engine-hero/
Not quite Sully territory, but a job well done none the less.
https://heavy.com/news/2018/04/tammi...0-engine-hero/
Not quite Sully territory, but a job well done none the less.
However we are back to seeing the word 'hero' thrown about again. It was as much in Tammy's own interest as it was the rest of the passengers to get the airframe down in one piece. Heroism should be left to describe those who deliberately and selflessly risk their own lives to save the lives of others.
In this scenario, if the hole had been much larger and an entire seat with passenger was about to be sucked out, yet another passenger seated in a 'safe' part of the fuselage undid their seatbelt to hold the person from falling out - that would be heroic. They would be endangering their own life to save others.
Pedant mode off.
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Agreed!
Yet to be verified, but here's the report in NYT:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/17/u...pgtype=article
Maybe all of that was unnecessary, but it sounds like not just flight crew but pax were trying to help out. If true, that deserves some credit.
However we are back to seeing the word 'hero' thrown about again. It was as much in Tammy's own interest as it was the rest of the passengers to get the airframe down in one piece. Heroism should be left to describe those who deliberately and selflessly risk their own lives to save the lives of others.
In this scenario, if the hole had been much larger and an entire seat with passenger was about to be sucked out, yet another passenger seated in a 'safe' part of the fuselage undid their seatbelt to hold the person from falling out - that would be heroic. They would be endangering their own life to save others.
In this scenario, if the hole had been much larger and an entire seat with passenger was about to be sucked out, yet another passenger seated in a 'safe' part of the fuselage undid their seatbelt to hold the person from falling out - that would be heroic. They would be endangering their own life to save others.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/17/u...pgtype=article
“The top half of her torso was out the window,” he said. “There was a lot of blood because she was hit by some of the shrapnel coming off the engine after it exploded.”
Mr. Kraidelman said passengers and flight attendants struggled “to drag her back into the aircraft.” When they did, she was unconscious and seriously injured, and flight attendants and passengers tried to revive her. Upon seeing the scene, one flight attendant began to cry, Mr. Tranchin said.
“They were doing CPR on her and using the defibrillator while we were landing,” Mr. Kraidelman said. “They were working on her while everyone else had their oxygen mask on.”
Mr. Tranchin said that one of the passengers helping had at one point placed his lower back up against the opening in the plane, in an apparent effort to help with the compression. The man did this for the next 20 minutes, Mr. Tranchin said, adding that the man later told him that the pressure at his back had been extreme.'
Mr. Kraidelman said passengers and flight attendants struggled “to drag her back into the aircraft.” When they did, she was unconscious and seriously injured, and flight attendants and passengers tried to revive her. Upon seeing the scene, one flight attendant began to cry, Mr. Tranchin said.
“They were doing CPR on her and using the defibrillator while we were landing,” Mr. Kraidelman said. “They were working on her while everyone else had their oxygen mask on.”
Mr. Tranchin said that one of the passengers helping had at one point placed his lower back up against the opening in the plane, in an apparent effort to help with the compression. The man did this for the next 20 minutes, Mr. Tranchin said, adding that the man later told him that the pressure at his back had been extreme.'