Lawyers: Major engine failure seen on Hawaii-bound flight a recurring problem
Lawyers: Major engine failure seen on Hawaii-bound flight a recurring problem By Rick Daysog | February 22, 2021 at 6:05 PM HST - Updated February 22 at 8:14 PM
HONOLULU, Hawaii (HawaiiNewsNow) - Attorneys with expertise in airline accidents say the major engine failure aboard Honolulu-bound United Flight 328 on Saturday has been a recurring problem.
They said similar engine failures have occurred at least three times in recent years with the same Boeing 777 model, including a United Airlines flight to the islands three years ago.
âYou can just imagine if this Denver flight had gotten 1,000 miles off the California coast, thereâs a real chance that they wouldnât have made it back,â said attorney Rick Fried, who has represented a number of passengers and crew members involved in airline accidents over the years.
PICTURED - The broken fan blade that caused the Denver air explosion: Engine piece snapped off mid-flight because of wear and tear , sparked fire and fell onto soccer field, investigators say
Investigators believe a damaged fan blade broke off the Boeing 777 engine, chipping off part of a second one A preliminary on-scene exam indicates damage consistent with metal fatigue, NTSB s Robert Sumwalt said
Pictures of the aircraft in a hangar at Denver Airport yesterday show the damage to the engine up close
Recovered fan blade parts are being flown to a Pratt & Whitney laboratory and will be examined on Tuesday
Boeing has called for the grounding of 128 of its 777 planes across the world as US regulators investigated a United Airlines flight whose engine caught fire and fell apart over a suburban area of Denver in Colorado State.
The investigation into an engine explosion on a jetliner taking off from Denver is focusing on a fan blade that appeared to be weakened by wear and tear, a development reminiscent of a fatal failure on board another plane in 2018.