Looks like the unfortunate flight PK 661’s crash was not enough of a warning for other airlines, at least according to certain media outlets. A Manchester bound return flight was at the center of a controversy as it reported a faulty engine part.
The plane, an Airbus A-330, was being operated by Shaheen Air. The plane was to fly from Islamabad to Manchester then back again. On January 3rd, the plane flew to Manchester and an engine malfunction was reported by the captain during the flight. Later on, the return flight back to Islamabad was canceled.
Geo TV reported that they received an image of the engine’s fuel quantity indicator (the faulty part) which was tied together with wires and chains. Here’s the image:
Image courtesy Geo TV
The plane was grounded when the fault was discovered. It remained grounded for 5 days until January 8th, after that the airplane went on a ferry flight (delivery flights for the express purpose of returning them to a home station) to Lahore.
During the flight, the captain was informed that an engine’s fuel filter had stopped working. He then operated the flight on a single engine until it reached Lahore.
After landing at Lahore, the plane was grounded again and is currently in Bay 20 of the airport. Geo claims that their sources informed them of metal splinters spread throughout the hangar in which the plane was parked. This meant, according to Geo, that some of the parts were torn from the plane’s engine.
They added that the plane undertook several flights in the same condition as well.
We reached out to Shaheen Air and their response is copied below verbatim.
Shaheen Air completely rejects baseless and false reports which claimed that the airline used flimsy wires and chains to tie together engine components of its Airbus A330 on Shaheen Air flight NL 901. The method used is an official Airbus approved method for the prevention of unwanted movement of fasteners, connectors, unions or parts that turn. The specific images shown, are an application of the Airbus approved wirelocking method in the manufacturer’s Approved Maintenance Manual.
The airline is deeply saddened by severe misrepresentation engaged in by a media house without seeking so much as a clarification or verifying from a technical person the correctness of their news before publishing maliciously for immediate notoriety. The airline intends to exercise its legal and other rights in seeking redress against the network including for any losses such false news bring.
The airline regrets such sensationalizing false news which creates a negative and fearful environment for the travelling Pakistani public, the aviation industry of Pakistan and for the perception of Pakistan as a whole.
Shaheen Air also reiterated that it keeps passenger safety as its absolute first priority. The airline maintains a fleet of 24 aircraft currently and has an excellent airworthiness record. The management of Shaheen Air repeated that as the only Pakistani airline that has by the grace of Allah never had a single fatality in 24 years of operations, it makes no compromise on safety.
According to the earlier mentioned news report, Geo TV claimed,
While Shaheen Air entirely rejected the claims saying that the picture of engine being shown is not from one of the planes in its fleet. They said it is wrong to link the faulty plane to the airliner.
The response we received from Shaheen Air paints a completely different picture and says that they weren’t even consulted in the first place. The accusation is a serious one and the relevant authorities need to get to the root of the matter immediately.
News source: Geo TV