Notes 76 Instances Where Panels Detached In-Flight

Citing numerous instances over the past several years in which engine fan cowls have taken flight of their own accord -- and right off a number of Airbus A320-Family aircraft, and Bombardier CRJ models -- on Friday the National Transportation Safety Board issued four new recommendations for the Federal Aviation Administration (which all boil down to, essentially, "make sure the damn things are attached properly before flight" -- Ed.)

"The issue of engine fan cowl separations has been an ongoing problem," the Board writes. "The Safety Board reviewed records from Bombardier, Airbus, foreign investigations, and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) service difficulty reports (SDRs) related to engine fan cowl separations. This review found that, since 1992, there have been 15 events involving Airbus SA model airplanes, including the 3 Airbus SA events cited in this letter; another 26 engine fan cowl separations occurred on 17 different airplane models since 1992. In addition, Board queries to Bombardier revealed 33 domestic and foreign cases of engine fan cowl separations (including 6 cases in 2007 alone), dating back to January 2001."

The NTSB thus recommended the FAA:

Require all operators of Airbus single-aisle and Bombardier CL-600 airplane models to revise existing aircraft maintenance manual procedures and maintenance inspection documents to require a dual inspection signoff to confirm that engine fan cowls are latched after completing any engine maintenance that involves the opening of an engine fan cowl. (A-08-79)

Require all operators of Airbus single-aisle and Bombardier CL-600 airplane models to require maintenance personnel to inform flight crews when engine fan cowls have been opened before flight. (A-08-80)

Require all operators of Airbus single-aisle and Bombardier CL-600 airplane models to provide guidance to maintenance personnel and flight crews on how to inspect engine fan cowls to verify that they are latched properly. (A-08-81)

Determine the extent of the problem of engine fan cowl separations on all airplanes and, should a widespread problem exist for any airplanes, require operators of those airplanes to include a dual inspection signoff in their maintenance procedures to confirm that engine fan cowls are latched after completing any engine maintenance that involves the opening of an engine fan cowl. (A-08-82)

FMI: Read The Full List Of Recommendations (.pdf)