ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 309958
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| Date: | Wednesday 26 October 2016 |
| Time: | 15:50 LT |
| Type: |  Airbus A330-223 |
| Owner/operator: | Delta Air Lines |
| Registration: | N855NW |
| MSN: | 621 |
| Year of manufacture: | 2004 |
| Engine model: | Pratt & Whitney PW4168A |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 120 |
| Aircraft damage: | None |
| Category: | Serious incident |
| Location: | Seattle/Tacoma International Airport, WA (SEA/KSEA) -
 United States of America
|
| Phase: | Initial climb |
| Nature: | Passenger - Scheduled |
| Departure airport: | Seattle/Tacoma International Airport, WA (SEA/KSEA) |
| Hong Kong-Chek Lap Kok International Airport (HKG/VHHH) | |
| Investigating agency: | NTSB |
| Confidence Rating: |  Accident investigation report completed and information captured |
A Delta Air Lines Airbus A330-223, N855NW, equipped with two Pratt & Whitney (P&W) PW4168A-1D turbofan engines experienced a No. 1 (left) engine fire during initial climb from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), Washington. The flight crew declared an emergency, discharged both fire bottles, and returned to SEA for an uneventful overweight single engine landing.
The No. 1 engine fire was caused by a fuel leak that originated from a high cycle fatigue crack on the fuel nozzle No. 1 fuel manifold supply line. Fuel nozzle No. 1 is located at the 12 o'clock position on the engine, so the fuel that leaked from the crack ran down the diffuser case and ignited on the engine case surface. The diffuser case reaches high enough temperatures during engine operation to auto-ignite Jet A fuel. The greatest concentration of soot/discoloration was observed from the 6 to 9 o'clock positions between the forward flange of the HPT case to the aft flange of the diffuser case, consistent with fuel collecting at the bottom of the engine and in the lower half of the thrust reverser cowls and creating a rich fuel to air mixture.
Probable Cause
A No. 1 engine fire caused by a fuel manifold supply line high cycle fatigue crack which led to a fuel leak that subsequently ignited on hot engine case surfaces. The fatigue crack originated and progressed due to elevated fuel manifold assembly vibration levels. Engine vibration testing identified a combustor tone that excites a natural (resonant) frequency of the fuel manifolds at specific engine speeds on Pratt & Whitney PW4000-94 and -100 inch fan series engines that feature a TALON II combustor.
Accident investigation:
 |
|
Sources:
NTSB ENG17IA003
History of this aircraft
Other occurrences involving this aircraft
| 29 August 2005 | N855NW | Northwest Airlines | 0 | Portland International Airport, OR (PDX) | |
min |
| 28 April 2017 | N855NW | Delta Air Lines | 0 | Near Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK/ZBAA) |  |
min |
Location
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 01-Apr-2023 13:15 | ASN Update Bot | Added |
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