Delta May Need To Inspect Its Airbus A220s For Fire Risk
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is mulling the issuance of an Airworthiness Directive for the popular Airbus A220 model of aircraft. This comes after a report of a protective cap not being removed on the crew oxygen system. The removal of the cap prevents oxygen build-up under the flight deck floor, which could cause a fire risk. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), announced today, is under consultation for 45 days.美国联邦航空管理局(FAA)正在考虑为畅销的空客A220型飞机发布适航指令。此前有报道称,机组氧气系统的保护盖未能拆卸。移除舱盖可以防止氧气在飞行甲板地板下积聚,氧气聚集可能导致火灾风险。目前,正在对今天宣布的《拟制定规则的通知》(NPRM)进行为期45天的审议。Transport Canada first highlighted the issue加拿大运输局首先提出了这个问题Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA) has implemented an Airworthiness Directive (AD) for the Airbus A220 to correct an unsafe condition. As the regulator and aviation authority for US operated A220s, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has followed suit in launching a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for the same fault.加拿大交通部民用航空局(TCCA)实施了一项空客A220飞机适航指令(AD),以纠正不安全情况。联邦航空管理局(FAA)也针对同样的错误发布了一份拟制定规则通知(NPRM)。The fault relates to a manufacturing issue, whereby a protective cap has not been removed from the crew oxygen system. This cap, intended to prevent damage from foreign object debris (FOD), is designed to be removed at the point of installation to allow airflow. It covers an extraction duct located under the flight deck floor.该故障与制造问题有关,即防护盖没有从机组氧气系统中拆除。这种盖,旨在防止外来多余物FOD的破坏,设计为在安装时可拆卸,以使气流流动。它覆盖位于飞行甲板地板下的排气管道。Should the cap be left on, there is a potential that oxygen could build up under the flight deck floor. As oxygen is an oxidizer, this presents a low but present risk of an oxygen fed fire, which is unacceptable on a commercial aircraft.如果舱盖还在,氧气就有可能在飞行甲板地板下积聚。由于氧气是一种氧化剂,因此造成较低的但是却真切存在的氧气引发火灾的风险,这在商用飞机上是不可接受的。As well as providing extraction for the oxygen, the duct also ventilates much of the electrical harnesses and equipment which are located in this area too. The proposed Airworthiness Directive requires that airlines inspect this area and remove the relevant cap if required.除了抽取氧气,管道作用还有为这个区域的大部分电缆和设备通风。拟议的适航指令要求航空公司检查该区域,并在必要时拆卸相关盖板。Only 20 aircraft affectedEven though US operator of the A220, Delta Air Lines, has taken delivery of 31 of its 45 firm orders, the FAA doesn’t expect all aircraft to be affected. This suggests it was a problem on a specific production line or a mistake by a particular technician and says only around 20 aircraft will require inspection.尽管A220飞机的美国运营商达美航空公司(Delta Air Lines)已经收到了45架订单中的31架,但美国联邦航空局预计不是所有飞机都受到影响。这表明是某条生产线上的问题,或者是某个技术人员的失误,并表示只有大约20架飞机需要接受检查。As the AD has been approved by the aviation authority of another country, the NPRM will likely translate into a directive without much resistance. Although the proposal doesn’t say as much, it will only affect Delta Air Lines, as no other US airline has received the A220. JetBlue is expecting its own A220s later this year.由于该适航指令已由另一个国家的航空当局批准的,NPRM很可能会转化为一个指令,并无太多阻力。尽管该提案没有说太多信息,但它只会影响达美航空公司,因为没有其他美国航空公司接收过A220。捷蓝航空预计将在今年晚些时候受到自己的A220飞机。The cost to correct the fault is minimal. A simple visual inspection and straightforward removal of the cap will fix it. However, there is some disassembly of the flight deck required, which the FAA estimates will take three hours. All in all, the cost to fix each aircraft is estimated to be just $255.纠正这一错误的成本是很低的。纠正只需简单的目视检查和直接取下盖板。然而,需要对飞行甲板进行一些拆卸,联邦航空局估计需要3个小时。总而言之,修理每架飞机的费用估计只有255美元。The FAA is receiving comments on the NPRM until September 25th, after which time the rule will become a directive, unless challenged. While the FAA doesn’t say what timescales will be involved in compliance, Transport Canada set a deadline of no more than 1,650 flight hours or eight months from the date of the AD.联邦航空局在9月25日之前都会接收关于NPRM的意见,在那之后,除非有人提出异议,否则该拟制定规则将成为指令。虽然联邦航空局没有说明具体的时间表,但加拿大运输局设定的最后期限是在适航指令发布之日起的8个月内,飞行时间不超过1,650小时。It’s likely that the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) will soon follow suit. With more A220s in Europe than anywhere else, 51 at the latest count, the impact could be greater on these operators. It’s not a huge problem to fix, but one that could be catastrophic in unfortunate circumstances.欧盟航空安全局(EASA)很可能很快也会效仿。欧洲的A220数量超过了其他任何地方,最新统计为51架,对这些运营商的影响可能更大。这不是一个需要纠正的大问题,但在不幸的情况下可能会造成灾难性的后果。https://simpleflying.com/delta-a220-fire-risk/每日一句 There is always time for romance.
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