EU Orders Airbus A350 Inspections After Cathay Pacific Engine Fire
EU Orders Airbus A350 Inspections After Cathay Pacific Engine Fire
There are 86 such planes in service worldwide, according to the EASA.Europe's aviation safety agency said on Thursday (Sep 5) it will require inspection of at least a part of the fleet of Airbus A350 wide-body jets in operation after an engine fire on a Cathay Pacific flight.
Rolls-Royce, which makes the engines on Cathay's A350s, confirmed it was launching "a one-time precautionary engine inspection programme" and was "working very closely" with the EU agency.
Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific, one of the largest operators of the long-haul A350 jetliner, grounded 48 planes for checks on Monday after a Zurich-bound flight had to return to the city shortly after take-off.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) said on Thursday that the A350-1000 aircraft suffered an engine failure due to a high pressure fuel hose failing.
歐洲航空安全管理局週四（9月5日）表示，將要求對空中客車A350寬體飛機的至少部分機隊進行檢查，此前一架國泰航空航班發生了發動機起火事故。
製造Cathay的A350飛機引擎的勞斯萊斯公司確認正在啓動「一次性預防性發動機檢查計劃」，並「與歐盟機構保持密切合作」.
總部位於香港的國泰航空是長程A350客機最大的運營商之一，在一架飛往蘇黎世的航班起飛後不久返航之後，週一因檢查而使48架飛機停飛.
歐洲航空安全局（EASA）週四表示，A350-1000飛機由於高壓燃油軟管故障導致發動機故障.
EASA said there was an "in-flight engine fire shortly after take-off", which was "promptly detected and extinguished".
EASA表示，飛行起飛後不久發生了「飛行中發動機着火」事件，「及時發現並撲滅」.
In its emergency directive addressed to airlines, the EASA mandated inspections on A350-1000s which are powered by XWB-97 engines.
歐洲航空安全局針對裝備XWb-97發動機的A350-1000飛機發布緊急指令，要求對其進行檢查.
There are 86 such planes in service worldwide, according to the EASA.
根據EASA的數據，全球有86架此類飛機正在運營.
The move does not affect the A350-900 model, of which there are 526 planes in operation according to Airbus figures from July.
根據空中客車公司7月的數據，此舉不影響A350-900型號，目前有526架該型飛機在運營中.
The inspections, to check for damage of fuel hose connections inside engines, "need to take place over the next 3 to 30 days" according to an EASA statement.
根據歐洲航空安全局的聲明，檢查引擎內燃油軟管連接處是否受損的檢查"需要在接下來的3到30天內進行"。
"This action is a precautionary measure," executive director Florian Guillermet said.
"這項行動是一項預防措施，"執行董事Florian Guillermet表示。
The agency said earlier on Thursday that the directive would only apply to European airlines that fly the aircraft, with regulators in other countries free to decide whether or not to enforce it.
該機構早些時候在週四表示，該指令只適用於飛行該飛機的歐洲航空公司，其他國家的監管機構可自由決定是否執行。
ROLLS-ROYCE ENGINE INSPECTIONS
勞斯萊斯發動機檢查
The Cathay incident prompted other airlines in the region to carry out similar checks on their A350-900 and A350-1000 models, which are powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-84 and XWB-97 engines, respectively.
Rolls-Royce said on Thursday it was launching "a one-time precautionary engine inspection programme" which may apply "to a portion of the A350 fleet".
A source told AFP that Airbus and Rolls-Royce have told airlines that only A350-1000s powered by XWB-97 engines are concerned by the problem.
Airbus did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The first A350 was delivered to Qatar Airways at the end of 2014. Since the end of the production of the jumbo A380, the A350 is Airbus' largest aircraft. The largest version, the 1000, can carry nearly 500 passengers.
The A350-1000 can travel more than 16,000km in one hop. That will be pushed to nearly 18,000km in the "Sunrise" version ordered by Australian airline Qantas to fly directly between Sydney and London.
A competitor to Boeing's 787 Dreamliner, more than 1,300 A350s have been ordered. Airbus figures from the end of July show 613 have been delivered to airlines.
國泰航空的事件促使該地區的其他航空公司對其搭載勞斯萊斯特倫特XWb-84和XWb-97發動機的A350-900和A350-1000機型進行類似檢查。
勞斯萊斯週四表示，他們將啓動"一次性預防性發動機檢查方案"，這可能適用於"部分A350機隊"。
消息人士向法新社透露，空中客車和勞斯萊斯已告知航空公司，只有由XWb-97發動機提供動力的A350-1000才存在問題。
空中客車沒有立即回應置評請求。
2014年底，首架A350交付給卡塔爾航空。自珍寶餐飲集團A380停產以來，A350已成爲空中客車公司的最大飛機。最大版本1000可以搭載近500名乘客。
A350-1000能夠進行一次超過16,000公里的長途飛行。澳大利亞航空公司Qantas訂購的"日出"版本將飛行直達悉尼和倫敦之間，飛行距離將接近18,000公里。
A350是波音787夢想飛機的競爭對手，已經收到超過1300架的訂單。截至7月底的空客數據顯示已經有613架交付給航空公司。
Qatar Airways is the biggest operator of the 1000 version, with 24 in its fleet, followed by Cathay Pacific and British Airways, which both operate 18.
卡塔爾航空是1000版本最大的運營商，擁有24架，其次是國泰航空和英國航空，它們都運營18架。
Cathay, which cancelled 90 flights after the Monday incident, said on Wednesday it expects to resume full operations on Saturday after having already fixed six of the 15 airplanes it found needed to have fuel lines replaced.
國泰在星期一事件後取消了90個航班，並表示預計在已經更換了15架飛機燃油管道的其中6架後，星期六將恢復全面運營。
Emirates airline CEO Tim Clark expressed concern last year about the durability of the Trent XWB-97 engines, prompting Rolls-Royce to indicate it would work to boost their performance.
阿聯酋航空首席執行官Tim Clark去年對Trent XWb-97發動機的耐用性表示擔憂，促使勞斯萊斯表示將努力提高其性能。
Shares in Airbus shed 1.2 per cent in late afternoon trading while the Paris CAC 40 index was 0.6 per cent lower. Rolls-Royce shares fell 1.4 per cent while London's FTSE 100 index was off 0.1 per cent. – AFP
空客股價在午後交易中下跌了1.2%，而巴黎CAC 40指數下跌了0.6%。勞斯萊斯股價下跌了1.4%，而倫敦FTSE 100指數下跌了0.1%。-法新社
譯文內容由第三人軟體翻譯。
