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The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the FAA will bring about new safety regulations to better deal with in-flight engine shutdowns caused by icing...
"On Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration will propose new safety rules that are expected to apply eventually to about 1,200 widebody jetliners world-wide, including Boeing 747 jumbo jets. Pilots of those planes will be required to turn on engine anti-ice systems more frequently during descents, to reduce the chances of sudden shutdowns and to increase the likelihood that engines that quit will restart."
This is in response to what the FAA and NTSB call "crystalline icing", the ability of tiny ice crystals to get sucked into the engine intakes at high altitude and build up on the interior metal surfaces of the engines. The ice then either breaks loose and can cause damage to the turbine blades, or melts and causes a flameout. This type of internal engine icing is said to be especially problematic for aircraft cruising at altitudes between 25,000-39,000ft or flying near strong storm systems.
According the article, there has been at least 14 documented incidents of dual-engine flameouts since 2002, and over 100 cases of dramatic power drops or single-engine flameouts since the mid-90s. The shutdowns are temporary, with the engines being restarted and returning to normal operation. In 2005, however, the dual-shutdown of a Beechjet at 38,000ft near Florida resulted in the plane having to "glide" to a landing in JAX. A recent incident involving a three-engine flameout of a Philippine Airlines 747 and a 2006 dual-flameout of a Qatar A330 has led General Electric (who's engines powered both a/c) to work more closely with the FAA to come up with solutions to the problem, above those that the FAA and GE already had in place, such as revisions to the engine software.
Rolls-Royce and Pratt & Whitney are also working to find solutions. GE says that it's difficult re-creating the conditions that produce this type of icing because little is known about the actual conditions that would cause a flameout to start with.
"On Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration will propose new safety rules that are expected to apply eventually to about 1,200 widebody jetliners world-wide, including Boeing 747 jumbo jets. Pilots of those planes will be required to turn on engine anti-ice systems more frequently during descents, to reduce the chances of sudden shutdowns and to increase the likelihood that engines that quit will restart."
This is in response to what the FAA and NTSB call "crystalline icing", the ability of tiny ice crystals to get sucked into the engine intakes at high altitude and build up on the interior metal surfaces of the engines. The ice then either breaks loose and can cause damage to the turbine blades, or melts and causes a flameout. This type of internal engine icing is said to be especially problematic for aircraft cruising at altitudes between 25,000-39,000ft or flying near strong storm systems.
According the article, there has been at least 14 documented incidents of dual-engine flameouts since 2002, and over 100 cases of dramatic power drops or single-engine flameouts since the mid-90s. The shutdowns are temporary, with the engines being restarted and returning to normal operation. In 2005, however, the dual-shutdown of a Beechjet at 38,000ft near Florida resulted in the plane having to "glide" to a landing in JAX. A recent incident involving a three-engine flameout of a Philippine Airlines 747 and a 2006 dual-flameout of a Qatar A330 has led General Electric (who's engines powered both a/c) to work more closely with the FAA to come up with solutions to the problem, above those that the FAA and GE already had in place, such as revisions to the engine software.
Rolls-Royce and Pratt & Whitney are also working to find solutions. GE says that it's difficult re-creating the conditions that produce this type of icing because little is known about the actual conditions that would cause a flameout to start with.
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