Are A380's safe enough to fly? [hairline cracks found in wings]

[bat21]

Oh! Might have been clearer if you used on of these or or even :shock: as well

Actually, I did put in a little emoticon and it showed in my preview but not in the final post. Once again Qantas are at the core of our problems.

 

[nlagalle]

Gee another to blinded by all the memberships listed on their profile to see a tongue in cheek comment. I am an unashamed big Q lover and rally against many of the "lets blame Qantas for the Japan Tsunami" types on AFF

Actually without the smileys you can't see if you are serious or tongue in cheek. They do come in handy for such sentences. tongue in cheek and sarcasm is very hard to read online! :shock:

 

[spudseamus]

Actually, I did put in a little emoticon and it showed in my preview but not in the final post. Once again Qantas are at the core of our problems.

and now my cat is pregnant !!:shock:

 

[MEL_Traveller]

lots of people tell us that 'everything is ok'. but we know it's not always the case.

doctors, car manufacturers, politicians.

European regulators tell us Garuda is now safe to fly... many on these boards argue vigorously against that.

not sure why someone from airbus saying 'everything's ok' is so wonderfully lapped up?

 

[Must...Fly!]

not sure why someone from airbus saying 'everything's ok' is so wonderfully lapped up?

Because airbus have more to lose than most if one falls out of the sky.

That, and I trust QF also.

 

[The Rok]

That, and I trust QF also.

I used to. Not so sure these days.

 

[Berlin]

More trouble coming...

Airbus said on Thursday it had discovered more cracks in the wings of two A380 superjumbo aircraft but insisted the world's largest jetliner remained safe to fly.The announcement comes two weeks after tiny cracks were first reported in the wings of the 525-seat, double-decker aircraft, which entered service just over four years ago.
"Airbus confirms that some additional cracks have been found on a limited number of non-critical brackets ... inside the wings of some A380s," the planemaker said in a statement.
"Airbus emphasises that these cracks do not affect the safe operation of the aircraft".
The European Aviation Safety Authority (EASA) confirmed it would issue a bulletin on Friday mandating precuationary checks.
The latest cracking problem was discovered in two aircraft during a routine two-year inspection, an Airbus spokeswoman said. She declined to name the operators of the aircraft.

www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/19/airbus-a-idUSL6E8CJ2DX20120119

 

[munitalP]

More trouble coming...

Airbus said on Thursday it had discovered more cracks in the wings of two A380 superjumbo aircraft but insisted the world's largest jetliner remained safe to fly.The announcement comes two weeks after tiny cracks were first reported in the wings of the 525-seat, double-decker aircraft, which entered service just over four years ago.
"Airbus confirms that some additional cracks have been found on a limited number of non-critical brackets ... inside the wings of some A380s," the planemaker said in a statement.
"Airbus emphasises that these cracks do not affect the safe operation of the aircraft".
The European Aviation Safety Authority (EASA) confirmed it would issue a bulletin on Friday mandating precuationary checks.
The latest cracking problem was discovered in two aircraft during a routine two-year inspection, an Airbus spokeswoman said. She declined to name the operators of the aircraft.

www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/19/airbus-a-idUSL6E8CJ2DX20120119

Ahh, more non critical brackets. It would be nice to know when these brackets become critical to the safety of the aircraft. Is it when the critical bracket fails and the non critical bracket then becomes critical (i.e. N-1 redundancy) or is it when the non critical bracket fails and the coffee pot slides off the server?

This is more hot air and spin. I think Airbus A380's are in trouble - IMHO (thats design trouble)

 

[UP4014]

I think there is more happening inside those 380 wings than Airbus is letting on at present.

Matt

 

[oz_mark]

Ahh, more non critical brackets. It would be nice to know when these brackets become critical to the safety of the aircraft. Is it when the critical bracket fails and the non critical bracket then becomes critical (i.e. N-1 redundancy) or is it when the non critical bracket fails and the coffee pot slides off the server?

This is more hot air and spin. I think Airbus A380's are in trouble - IMHO (thats design trouble)

As I understand it, it is a different cracking pattern in the same type of bracket as before, discovered as part of the inspection program devised after the first discovery.

Look for a directive regarding inspections from EASA soon!

 

[Fantic125]

<snip> I think Airbus A380's are in trouble - IMHO (thats design trouble)

Are you saying the A380's aren't all they're cracked up to be?

 

[NM]

I am sure there are lots of "brackets" inside an A380 wing that are not part of the structural integrity of the wing or the airframe. for example, I expect there are many "brackets" that hold things like wiring looms, hydraulic pipes, landing gear doors, landing and navigation lights etc. I very much doubt the failure of one of those types of brackets would cause the wings to fall off in flight!

Without knowing the function of the "brackets" in question, nobody is in a position to make a judgement regarding the seriousness of the issue or the urgency of the repairs needed. So far, all I have read from people who are in a position to know the scope of the issues is that it's not critical, poses no safety risk and does not require immediate grounding or action to the next scheduled service/inspection. This evaluation comes from professionals who have the responsibility to make such determinations every day. I trust their judgement much more than the scaremungers being reported in some media reports.

 

[oz_mark]

I am sure there are lots of "brackets" inside an A380 wing that are not part of the structural integrity of the wing or the airframe. for example, I expect there are many "brackets" that hold things like wiring looms, hydraulic pipes, landing gear doors, landing and navigation lights etc. I very much doubt the failure of one of those types of brackets would cause the wings to fall off in flight!

Of the bracket in question, it is reported that there about 40 per rib.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

airbus and the airlines will soon realize that non critical cracks might just scare off critical passengers...

exactly as pointed out above... there is so little information available. if it really is not serious, why not issue a press release explaining everything? with a nice simple diagram.

otherwise, people are free to speculate.

anyway... it's up to the manufacturer and the airlines to determine how long they want this speculation to go on for. they could solve it very easily if they wanted to.

 

[amaroo]

Hopefully, people will read this & other articles and decide not to fly on the A380.....I then might be able to secure the elusive 4 FASA on QF31/32 I've been hunting for

 

[UP4014]

I am sure there are lots of "brackets" inside an A380 wing that are not part of the structural integrity of the wing or the airframe. for example, I expect there are many "brackets" that hold things like wiring looms, hydraulic pipes, landing gear doors, landing and navigation lights etc. I very much doubt the failure of one of those types of brackets would cause the wings to fall off in flight!

Without knowing the function of the "brackets" in question, nobody is in a position to make a judgement regarding the seriousness of the issue or the urgency of the repairs needed. So far, all I have read from people who are in a position to know the scope of the issues is that it's not critical, poses no safety risk and does not require immediate grounding or action to the next scheduled service/inspection. This evaluation comes from professionals who have the responsibility to make such determinations every day. I trust their judgement much more than the scaremungers being reported in some media reports.

If it's a bracket for a navigation light why don't they just say it to put everyone at ease, in the business of aircraft safety no comment is a comment.

Matt

 

[Alanslegal]

Hopefully, people will read this & other articles and decide not to fly on the A380.....I then might be able to secure the elusive 4 FASA on QF31/32 I've been hunting for

I'm with you. I'd rather pay for JASA where J isn't available and thus you're confirmed in F instead

 

[oz_mark]

If it's a bracket for a navigation light why don't they just say it to put everyone at ease, in the business of aircraft safety no comment is a comment.

They have said its the brackets that attach the rib to to the wing, and that there are about 40 per rib (and about 2000 per wing). Hardly a no comment.

 

[UP4014]

They have said its the brackets that attach the rib to to the wing, and that there are about 40 per rib (and about 2000 per wing). Hardly a no comment.

My post relates to NM's, need to be read together.

 

[Berlin]

airbus and the airlines will soon realize that non critical cracks might just scare off critical passengers...

Lol- one of the best comments I've read on here in a long time, lovin it!