Cathay Pacific grounds entire A350 fleet over engine component failure

Airline detects ‘first of its kind’ failure in A350 after Zurich flight returns to Hong Kong shortly after takeoff

A Cathay Pacific Airbus A350 in Hong Kong (Getty Images)

Cathay Pacific Airways grounded its entire fleet of 48 Airbus A350 aircraft for inspection after discovering an engine component failure on Monday.

The carrier said the “first of its kind” failure in an A350 was detected after a flight to Zurich returned to Hong Kong shortly after takeoff.

It cancelled 48 flights and launched fleet-wide inspections and repairs, expected to be completed within a day.

“This component was the first of its type to suffer such failure on any A350 aircraft worldwide,” the airline said. “We immediately brought this issue to the attention of the aircraft and engine manufacturers, as well as our regulators. As a precautionary measure, we also proactively initiated a fleet-wide inspection of our 48 A350 aircraft.”

The airline said it was coordinating with Hong Kong’s Civil Aviation Department as well as manufacturers and had secured spare parts for necessary repairs.

“Aircraft cleared for operation will return to service, while those identified with technical issues will undergo further repair and maintenance work,” Cathay director of engineering Keith Brown said. “Meanwhile, we are liaising with the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department and aircraft and engine manufacturers. We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused and appreciate our customers’ patience and understanding.”

A350 aircraft is powered by engines manufactured by Rolls Royce (Getty)

The A350, known for fuel efficiency, is powered by engines manufactured by the Britain company Rolls-Royce. Cathay Pacific added the model to its fleet in 2016.

Shares of Rolls-Royce dropped by as much as 8.8 per cent after Cathay reported the engine component failure.

The failure was discovered in an aircraft that had to land back at Hong Kong after taking off for Zurich. The diverted aircraft was an A350-1000, the larger of the two A350 models, both powered by the XWB-97, the largest Rolls-Royce jet engine. The aircraft involved was delivered in January 2019.

Cathay announced that it would provide more details about cancellations by Tuesday morning and advised passengers to check their flight status on the airline’s website.

The Independent has reached out to Cathay Pacific for comment.