Korean Air and Asiana stop operating Boeing 777 aircraft for’debris crash’

At around 1pm on the 20th (local time), four minutes after an American United Airlines airliner took off from Denver Airport, Colorado, the engine on the right wing is flying on fire. The 241 passenger plane made an emergency turn and landed safely and without casualties. Engine debris fell on the residential area, but there was no human injury. [로이터=연합뉴스]

Korean Air and Asiana Airlines have decided to suspend operations on the Boeing 777 aircraft, which fell to the ground due to engine failure during the flight from Denver, USA on the 20th.

According to the aviation industry on the 22nd, Korean Air suspended four out of six Boeing 777s equipped with PW4000 series engines, and is considering additional two. A Korean Air official said, “The remaining two were just equipped with new engines. “We are discussing additional measures with the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).” Korean Air has 16 Boeing 777s equipped with PW4000 series engines, and 10 are already in suspension due to a novel coronavirus infection (Corona 19).

Asiana Airlines also stopped operating nine Boeing 777s equipped with PW4000 engines on this day. Among low-cost carriers (LCCs), Jin Air is the only one with four Boeing 777s. Jin Air’s two Boeing 777s finished service that day, and there is no scheduled Boeing 777 flight until the weekend.

The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs is planning to decide whether or not to stop the operation according to the investigation by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The FAA has implied the possibility of banning the operation of the aircraft. An official from the aviation industry said, “We will take action according to the guidelines of the relevant agencies (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport),” and “we are putting all our efforts into safety management.”

After Boeing’s crash, the flight of the 777 has been suspended as it recommends strengthening safety measures for Boeing 777s to airlines around the world. United Airlines in the United States has virtually stopped operating 24 Boeing 777s. Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport also ordered the suspension of operations for 13 and 19 aircraft owned by Japan’s two major airlines, JAL and All Nippon Airways (ANA), respectively.

At around 1pm on the 20th (local time), four minutes after an American United Airlines airliner took off from Denver Airport, Colorado, the engine on the right wing is flying on fire. [로이터=연합뉴스]

On the 20th (local time), debris from the engine part of a United Airlines airliner’s passenger plane hit a residential area in Broomfield, outside Denver, Colorado. [AP=연합뉴스]

Prior to this, on the 20th (local time), United Airlines’ Boeing 777 airliner equipped with a PW4000 engine was departing from Denver International Airport in Colorado and heading for Honolulu, Hawaii, where the engine on the right side failed. The airliner made an emergency landing safely. However, gas debris from the air fell to the ground and struck houses near the airport, which almost led to a major accident.

The FAA estimated that the crack in the engine wing that caused the accident occurred inside and was not detected by the surface. The wings of the PW4000 engine are made of hollow titanium, and are currently only installed on the Boeing 777.

Reporters Baek Minjeong and Lee Byeong-jun [email protected]