23rd Jan 12
Airbus insists A380 still safe
by Katie Naylor
Cracks show: biggest carrier in the world has problems with wings
Cracks show: biggest carrier in the world has problems with wings
Airlines could have to carry out regular and detailed checks of their A380 superjumbos following the admission by Airbus that it discovered small cracks on two aeroplanes’ wings.
The European aircraft manufacturer revealed that it found the cracks on two A380s when conducting routine checks but insisted that the airliner remains safe to fly. The A380’s wings are made at Airbus’s Broughton-based factory in Wales.
Airbus confirmed in a statement that some additional cracks were discovered on a limited amount of non-critical brackets inside some of the A380s’ wings. The planemaker emphasised that the cracks would not affect the aircraft’s safe operation.
The European Aviation Safety Authority (EASA) is likely to confirm in the next few days that it is mandating that more detailed checks are carried out by airlines. It is thought that the safety regulator is holding talks with Airbus regarding establishing an official inspection and repair programme.
Before the admission by Airbus, both Singapore Airlines and Australian airline Qantas had already revealed that they had identified small cracks in the wing. They cracks have been found in an L-shaped bracket that connects the wing’s internal ‘rib’ structure to its exterior. Airbus has claimed the cracks are due to a manufacturing issue and can be fixed during inspections.
The A380 – the largest passenger jet in the world, costing €12bn (£10bn) to develop – has been operating for roughly four years, with Airbus delivering 68 planes. Among the airlines which have taken the plane are Emirates, Lufthansa, Qantas and Singapore Airlines.
It is not the first time the A380 has been faced with a technical issue. In 2010, Qantas was forced to ground its entire A380 fleet when one of its planes had to carry out an emergency landing in Singapore due to the explosion of one of its Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines during a flight.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau ruled that the explosion was caused by a “manufacturing defect” within the engine’s pipework that led to an oil leak. Rolls-Royce later took 53 of its Trent 900 engines out of service.
The revelation of the cracks being discovered was the downside of what was a successful week for Airbus. The planemaker delivered its yearly press conference in the German city of Hamburg last Tuesday and revealed that 2011 had been a record year as it outsold rival Boeing by nearly two-to-one.
The company delivered a total of 534 commercial planes and took net orders for 1,419 aircraft worth $140bn (£91bn) in 2011. The performance was aided by economic growth in developing markets, with the Asia Pacific region accounting for over 30 per cent of orders, as well as the success of its newly-launched A320neo jet.
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