London B-777 Hard Landing Due to Ice

The UK’s Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB) says ice in fuel lines “most probably” caused a twin-engine British Airways Boeing 777-236ER (G-YMMM) to lose power just prior to landing on Runway 27L at London Heathrow this past January. The AAIB issued three recommendations for interim measures to avoid future occurrences that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) are expected to soon adopt. AAIB investigators believe that water, which is normally present in aircraft fuel, may have frozen because of unusually cold weather on the flight from Beijing to London on Jan. 17. The AAIB said jetliner fuel systems must be re-designed. It recommended interim measures until such design changes to the fuel system are available.

The AAIB recommends that:

The FAA and EASA, in conjunction with Boeing and Rolls Royce, introduce interim measures for the Boeing 777, powered by Rolls Royce Trent 800 engines, to reduce the risk of ice formed from water in aviation turbine fuel causing a restriction in the fuel feed system (AAIB 2008-047).

The FAA and EASA take immediate action to consider the implications of the findings of this investigation on other certificated airframe/engine combinations (AAIB 2008-048).

The FAA and EASA review the current certification requirements to ensure that aircraft and engine fuel systems are tolerant to the potential build up and sudden release of ice in the fuel system (AAIB 2008-049).