November 14th 2024.
According to an investigation, a Qantas aircraft flew for nearly 300 hours with a loose tool lodged inside one of its engines. The specific aircraft in question was an Airbus A380-842, which completed a series of flights totaling 294 hours with the tool still stuck in the outboard left engine. The incident occurred after scheduled maintenance was performed in Los Angeles on December 6, 2023.
On January 1 of this year, the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) reported that a 1.25m-long nylon tool was discovered stuck against the low-pressure outlet guide vanes in the engine. This discovery was made after an expert offered a solution to the mystery of a "spy whale" that had been seen in the area. Prior to the tool's retrieval during the scheduled maintenance in Los Angeles, the Qantas aircraft had completed a total of 34 flights in the 26 days that the tool remained loose in the engine.
Surprisingly, the tool was not located by workers during the typical foreign object inspection conducted at the end of the three-day maintenance period in December. It continued to remain lodged inside the engine during 34 more flights, including those between LAX airport and Melbourne. Fortunately, the tool was found to have only suffered deformation and did not cause any damage to the engine itself.
Upon further investigation, the ATSB discovered that the maintenance engineers responsible for the aircraft failed to notice that the tool had been left inside the engine's low-pressure compressor case during their routine checks for foreign objects at the completion of the borescope inspection task. Additionally, they did not initiate the lost tool procedure once they realized it was missing. The certifying engineer then released the aircraft for service without accounting for the tool.
In light of this incident, Qantas engineering staff were briefed on the importance of ensuring that all tools are accounted for and returned after any maintenance periods. The airline also conducted an internal investigation and implemented new requirements regarding tool control. ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell emphasized the potential safety risks that foreign objects inside engines can pose for flights and stated that regulations, procedures, and training are in place to prevent such incidents from occurring.
Mitchell also stressed the importance of correctly implementing tool control measures to mitigate the potential for human errors. The safety of passengers and crew is of the utmost importance, which is why strict protocols are in place to prevent foreign object damage, especially during maintenance procedures.
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