The Federal Aviation Administration on Sunday issued an emergency airworthiness guideline calling for immediate or intensified inspections of aircraft similar to those that caught fire over Denver over the weekend.
The order relates to Boeing 777 aircraft equipped with certain Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines and will likely mean that some aircraft will be taken out of service, said FAA administrator Steve Dickson. said in a statement.
The order comes after a United Airlines passenger plane powered by two Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines crashed into the air on Saturday, causing an emergency.
No injuries were reported aboard the Honolulu-bound jet, despite the dramatic videos of one of the engines igniting and rattling loose.
There was also no reports of injuries in suburban Broomfield, where large pieces of engine and debris ended up in yards, parks and on vehicles.
“According to an initial review of the incident, the inspection interval should be increased for the hollow fan blades that are unique to this engine model used only on Boeing 777 aircraft,” Dickson said.
United is the only US operator with the PW4000 engine type in its fleet.
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