Leaked photos taken by Airbus engineers tell the tale of how badly damaged Qantas' Airbus A380 was after the uncontained engine failure of the aircraft's Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engine.
View the full gallery here.
The photos, leaked in a PDF document to Crikey.com, show a large fuel pipe was torn open, allowing jet fuel to gush out of the wing; control wiring that was severed, potentially preventing fire suppression systems from operating and severe damage to the "droop nose motor", which controls aspects of the wing stability.
There was also damage to the main body of the plane, in line with the upper deck cabin, showing how close QF32 came to disaster.
Qantas yesterday announced it would start flying A380s again, though the specific aircraft shown in the Airbus pictures is still parked in a hangar in Singapore airport, awaiting wing replacement and other major repairs by Airbus engineers.
Qantas says it will not fly A380s to the USA for the immediate future, as that route requires a heavier weight of fuel,requiring maximum engine thrust for takeoff -- a factor implicated in the engine fire that caused the explosion and damage to the plane.
[Crikey]
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