Cathay has canceled 34 flights through Sept. 4 and will cancel another 11 through Sept. 7 while the work is being carried out.
Cathay Pacific confirms it is on track to complete the unscheduled replacement of engine fuel lines in 15 of its Airbus A350s by Sept. 7.
The carrier identified a problem with an engine component on an A350-1000 on Sept. 2, prompting it to inspect all 48 of its A350s. It discovered the issue on a total of 15 aircraft and immediately began a replacement-and-repair program.
Bloomberg reported that the issue stemmed from deformed or degraded flexible fuel lines, and Cathay has since confirmed that fuel lines are the affected components. The -1000s are powered by Rolls-Royce Trent XWB-97 engines, and the -900s by XWB-84s.
In its latest update on Sept. 4, the carrier said it has finished replacing fuel lines on six of the 15 aircraft, with the remaining nine expected to return to service by Sept. 7.
Cathay has been canceling some flights while the work has been carried out. It canceled 34 through Sept. 4 and will cancel another 11 through Sept. 7. The carrier expects no more flight cuts after that, Cathay says. Nearly all of the cancellations have been on flights within the Asia-Pacific region, aside from one long-haul cancellation.
“This was a significant situation for Cathay to manage as the engine component failure was the first of its type to occur on any A350 aircraft anywhere in the world,” says Alex McGowan, Cathay’s chief operations and service delivery officer. “Completing thorough inspection and maintenance for all A350 aircraft within such a short time frame has been challenging ... the ability to safely deal with and resolve this issue reflects the can-do spirit of Cathay’s people.”
Some other airlines initiated inspections while waiting for official advice from the manufacturer. For example, Japan Airlines independently decided to inspect its five A350-1000s as a precautionary measure. In its latest update, JAL says it has so far finished inspecting three, with no problems found, and the remaining two are expected to be finished on Sept. 4.
“Although the A350-900 has a different engine type, we are also inspecting it as a precaution, and no problems have been found so far,” JAL says.
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