ROB COPPINGER & DAVID KAMINSKI-MORROW / LONDON
Rolls-Royce has begun a programme to screw down ice impact plates on Tay 620 and 650 engines after some were sucked into a Fokker 70's engines, causing an emergency landing.
On 5 January an Austrian Fokker 70 lost power minutes before landing when plates detached in both of its Tay engines. They were sucked in and blocked the guide vanes that direct air into the engine's bypass duct. This caused the engines to lose thrust, forcing the aircraft to land 4.4km (2.4nm) from Munich airport.
The plates, which line the engine's air intake and protect against ice impact, were originally fixed in place using a glue and flash vacuum production process. Rolls-Royce says: "We are fixing the plates more firmly, and screwing them down is one solution."
The work to screw down the plates on the 600 engines in use worldwide has begun and is expected to continue until August. Over 300 of these engines will be the 620-15 type on the Fokker 70. The remaining engines are Tay 650s used on the Fokker 100.
Source: Flight International
