A Boeing 777 and 747 suffered separate engine fires in the air on Saturday, both resulting in debris falling to the ground. Boeing (BA) fell.
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A Pratt & Whitney 4000-112 engine in one United airlines (UAL) The Boeing 777 bound for Hawaii failed shortly after takeoff from Denver. None of the 229 passengers or 10 crew members were injured. There were no reports of injuries on the ground.
The jet was a Boeing 777-200, a widebody that has been in use for 25 years.
On the same day in the Netherlands, a Boeing 747 cargo jet operated by Longtail Aviation also dropped engine parts in the city of Meerssen after its engine exploded and caught fire.
The Pratt & Whitney PW4000, a smaller version of the type on United’s flight, moved the cargo plane. The Boeing 747 landed safely in Belgium, but a Dutch woman was injured when she fell from engine wreckage.
United Airlines announced on Sunday that it will take its 24 Boeing 777s out of service with the Pratt & Whitney engine configuration. All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines have landed the 32 jets they have in service according to a regulatory guideline.
I say it again, shit! We will have to let the NTSB do its job to identify the cause of this engine failure, but this video # UA328 it’s crazy.pic.twitter.com/V4qvPwIJ5G
– Jason Rabinowitz (@AirlineFlyer) February 20, 2021
Boeing supported the suspension of 69 777s in service and 59 777s in storage with Pratt & Whitney engines until the Federal Aviation Administration identifies the appropriate inspection protocol.
Carriers can configure their Boeing 777 jets with General electrical (GE,) Rolls Royce or Raytheon Technologies(RTX) Pratt & Whitney.
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Mixed aviation stocks after grounding the Boeing 777
Boeing shares fell 1.1% to 214.98 in the stock market today. Raytheon fell 1.6% while GE rose 3.5%. Boeing Supplier Spirit AeroSystems (SPR) added 2%.
South Korean aviation officials said they were waiting for a response from local authorities before ordering the stranding of the affected Boeing 777s.
A preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board on Sunday found that two engine fan blades were broken and the remaining blades were damaged.
The FAA issued an Emergency Airworthiness Directive on Sunday.
“Based on the initial information, we concluded that the inspection interval should be increased for hollow fan blades that are exclusive to this engine model, used exclusively on Boeing 777 aircraft,” said FAA administrator Steve Dickson in a statement.
Boeing has struggled with major safety issues in recent years. His Boeing 737 Max only recently returned to service after a 20-month stranding due to two fatal accidents.
Follow Gillian Rich on Twitter for aviation news and more.
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