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New A380 Oil Leak Hits Qantas

New A380 Oil Leak Hits Qantas

Write: Shantina [2011-05-20]
Another A380 flown by Australian airline Qantas flew into London on only three engines after an oil leak prompted the pilots to reduce the fourth engine to idle on a flight from Singapore, The Australian reports.
It was the second oil problem on an A380 in less than two weeks and sources say the leaks may be the result of a design flaw with the Rolls-Royce Trent 900 that allows a fitting to loosen when subjected to vibration.
The latest problem, which happened as Qantas Flight 31 neared Ashgabat in Turkmenistan on February 24, is similar to a partial power loss on a different Qantas A380 near New Delhi, India on February 15.
An engine was also reduced to idle on that flight and the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) said it found the fitting of the external high pressure-intermediate pressure oil line "had less than the required torque".
In the latest incident, the crew detected a reduction in oil in the No. 3 engine and were forced to gradually reduce its thrust.
Qantas said the issue did not affect the safety of the flight and it was not related to the manufacturing flaw that caused a Trent 900 engine to explode in November and severely damage an A380 operating as QF32.
The incidents are being investigated by the ATSB and come as Qantas and Rolls-Royce are still negotiating on compensation for last year's catastrophic engine failure, which saw the national carrier temporarily ground its entire A380 fleet.
Qantas has estimated the full-year cost of the incident at AU$80 million. This does include the AU$100 million it will cost to fix the plane, which is covered by insurance, or damage to the airline's brand.