Canada has taken the reins of the investigation into the separation of almost the entire rudder from an Air Transat Airbus A310-300. The rudder broke away over international waters about 30min into a 6 March flight bound for Quebec from Varadero, Cuba, and the crew turned back, landing safely 60min later, says the Canada-based carrier.
There were 261 passengers and nine crew on board the 13 year-old aircraft, C-GPAT says Air Transat, adding that the crew did not declare an emergency and the first indication they had of a problem was the autopilot tripped out. The aircraft had completed 13,500 cycles and flown 49,000h. The airline says the A310 underwent its last A-check on 1 March and was not due for its next C-check until 2006. The A310-300's fin and single-piece rudder are of all-composite construction.
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada says its team at Varadero have taken the flight data and cockpit voice recorders, and is working with Airbus, and Cuban and French investigators.
DAVID LEARMOUNT/LONDON
Source: Flight International
