Cathay Pacific Flight 780
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Cathay Pacific Flight 780 was a flight from
Juanda International Airport Juanda International Airport (JIA) ( id, Bandar Udara Internasional Juanda) , is an international airport located in Sedati, Sidoarjo. It is now the third busiest airport in Indonesia (after Soekarno-Hatta and Ngurah Rai airport). This airpo ...
in Surabaya, Indonesia to
Hong Kong International Airport Hong Kong International Airport is Hong Kong's main airport, built on reclaimed land on the island of Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong. The airport is also referred to as Chek Lap Kok International Airport or ''Chek Lap Kok Airport'', to distinguish ...
on 13 April 2010. On board were 309 passengers and a crew of 13. As Flight 780 neared Hong Kong, the crew were unable to change the thrust output of the engines. The aircraft, an Airbus A330-342, landed at almost twice the speed of a normal landing, suffering minor damage. The 57 passengers who sustained injuries were hurt in the ensuing slide evacuation; one of them received serious injuries. The cause of the accident was contamination of the fuel taken on board at Surabaya, which gradually damaged both engines of the aircraft. The flight's two Australian pilots, Captain Malcolm Waters and First Officer David Hayhoe, who safely landed the aircraft despite the extraordinary challenge, have been compared to pilots
Chesley Sullenberger Chesley Burnett "Sully" Sullenberger III (born January 23, 1951) is a retired American fighter pilot, diplomat, and airline pilot best known for his heroism as captain of US Airways Flight 1549 that he ditched in the Hudson River in 2009 a ...
and
Jeffrey Skiles Jeffrey Bruce "Jeff" Skiles (born November 18, 1959) is an airline pilot for American Airlines. On January 15, 2009, he became globally known as first officer of US Airways Flight 1549, when he worked together with captain Chesley Sullenberger t ...
of
US Airways Flight 1549 US Airways Flight 1549 was a regularly scheduled US Airways flight from New York City (LaGuardia Airport), to Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte and Seattle, in the United States. On January 15, 2009, the Airbus A320 serving the flight bir ...
the previous year (January 2009). In March 2014, the two Flight 780 pilots were awarded the
Polaris Award The Polaris Award is the highest decoration associated with civil aviation, awarded by the International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Associations (IFALPA) to airline crews in recognition for acts of exceptional airmanship Airmanship is skil ...
by the
International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Associations The International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Associations (IFALPA) is an international not-for-profit organization of national pilots' associations. IFALPA was founded in April 1948 and is based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. History After t ...
for their heroism and airmanship. Captain Waters, who was 35 years old, had been working for Cathay Pacific for 12 years, while 37-year-old Hayhoe had been working for Cathay Pacific for 3 years and had previously served with the
Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...
for 11 years.


Aircraft

The aircraft involved in the accident was an Airbus A330-342, registration B-HLL, manufacturer's serial number 244, fitted with Rolls-Royce Trent 772-60 engines. It first flew on 4 November 1998 and was delivered to Cathay Pacific three weeks later on 25 November 1998. This aircraft was configured for a capacity of 311 passengers and 13 crew, with 44 business-class seats and 267 economy-class seats. After the incident, it was bought by DVB Bank in July 2011 (Arena Aviation Capital since March 2017) and was transferred to Dragonair (
Cathay Dragon Hong Kong Dragon Airlines Limited (), also known as Cathay Dragon () and Dragonair, was a Hong Kong-based international regional airline, with its corporate headquarters and airline hub, main hub at Hong Kong International Airport. In the f ...
) since 23 April 2012 and was reconfigured for a capacity of 307 passengers, with 42 business-class seats and 265 economy-class seats in 2013. It was also repainted into the new Cathay Dragon livery on 3 November 2017. The aircraft had another incident 6 years later as flight KA691 from Hong Kong to Penang on 8 September 2016, with 295 passengers and crew on board, when an airport delivery van crashed into the aircraft's left engine. The aircraft was withdrawn from service on August 13, 2020, in the expiration of its lease, after its last commercial flight from
Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
to Hong Kong as KA993 and its final flight was on October 14, 2020, to
Pinal Airpark Pinal Airpark , also known as Pinal County Airpark, is a non-towered, county-owned, public-use airport located northwest of the central business district of Marana, in Pinal County, Arizona, United States. Silverbell Army Heliport is co-loca ...
in
Marana, Arizona Marana is a town in Pima County, Arizona, United States, located northwest of Tucson, with a small portion in Pinal County. According to the 2010 census, the population of the town is 34,961. From 1990 to 2000, Marana was the fourth fastest-gr ...
, via
Anchorage Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring Ma ...
as KA3496. The aircraft was scrapped on site in November 2021.


Accident

Cathay Pacific Flight 780 departed from stand 8 at Juanda International Airport in Indonesia. It took off from runway 28 at 08:24 local time (01:24 UTC). During the climb, both engines experienced small
engine pressure ratio The engine pressure ratio (EPR) is the total pressure ratio across a jet engine, measured as the ratio of the total pressure at the exit of the propelling nozzle divided by the total pressure at the entry to the compressor. Jet engines use either ...
fluctuations, with No. 2 engine fluctuating over a greater range than No. 1. Just over half an hour after takeoff, cruising at
flight level In aviation and aviation meteorology, a flight level (FL) is an aircraft's altitude at standard air pressure, expressed in hundreds of feet. The air pressure is computed assuming an International Standard Atmosphere pressure of 1013.25 hPa ...
390 (about above sea level), the electronic centralized aircraft monitoring (ECAM) system displayed an "ENG 2 CTL SYS FAULT" error message. The crew contacted maintenance control (MC) to discuss the fluctuations. As other engine operating parameters on both engines were normal, continuing the flight was determined to be safe. Almost two hours after departure, at 03:16 UTC, the "ENG 2 CTL SYS FAULT" ECAM message reappeared. The crew contacted MC to review the issue. As all other engine parameters remained normal, continuing on to Hong Kong was again deemed safe. After another two hours elapsed, the aircraft was on descent to Hong Kong when, at 05:19 UTC, about southeast of Hong Kong International Airport, the aircraft's ECAM displayed "ENG 1 CTL SYS FAULT" and "ENG 2 STALL" within a short period. The second message signified an engine
compressor stall A compressor stall is a local disruption of the airflow in the compressor of a gas turbine or turbocharger. A stall that results in the complete disruption of the airflow through the compressor is referred to as a compressor surge. The severity of t ...
, a potentially serious engine problem. The flight crew accordingly carried out the necessary ECAM actions with No. 2 engine's thrust lever moved to the idle (or minimum-thrust setting) position. The crew set No. 1 engine to maximum continuous thrust to compensate for the low thrust of No. 2 engine. Following these actions, the crew declared a "
pan-pan The radiotelephony message PAN-PAN is the international standard urgency signal that someone aboard a boat, ship, aircraft, or other vehicle uses to declare that they have a situation that is urgent, but for the time being, does not pose an immed ...
" with Hong Kong
air traffic control Air traffic control (ATC) is a service provided by ground-based air traffic controllers who direct aircraft on the ground and through a given section of controlled airspace, and can provide advisory services to aircraft in non-controlled airs ...
, requesting the shortest possible route to the airport and priority landing. A few minutes later, about southeast of Hong Kong International Airport, the aircraft was in a
descent Descent may refer to: As a noun Genealogy and inheritance * Common descent, concept in evolutionary biology * Kinship, one of the major concepts of cultural anthropology **Pedigree chart or family tree **Ancestry **Lineal descendant **Heritage (d ...
and approaching an altitude of when an "ENG 1 STALL" ECAM message was annunciated. The flight crew carried out the actions for a No. 1 engine compressor stall and declared a "
mayday Mayday is an emergency procedure word used internationally as a distress signal in voice-procedure radio communications. It is used to signal a life-threatening emergency primarily by aviators and mariners, but in some countries local organiza ...
". The captain then moved the thrust levers to test engine responses. No. 1 engine's rotational fan speed slowly spooled up to about 74% N1, while No. 2 engine remained running below idle speed, about 17% N1, providing sufficient thrust to level off at 5,500 ft and reach Hong Kong. As the flight approached the airport, the crew found that movement of the thrust levers failed to reduce thrust below 74% N1 on No. 1 engine. At 13:43 hours local time (05:43 UTC), 11 minutes after declaring the "mayday", the aircraft touched down hard on runway 07L (length 3800 m; 12,470 ft) at a groundspeed of , over the normal touchdown speed for an A330 and above both the maximum allowable flap-extension speed and the speed rating of the tyres. The plane bounced and briefly became airborne again until it slammed down hard while banking left, causing the left engine to scrape against the runway surface. Both wing spoilers deployed automatically. Only No. 1 engine's thrust reverser deployed and activated with the right engine’s thrust reverser unresponsive due to a technical snag, forcing the crew to bring the aircraft to a stop using manual braking. remained between 70 and 80% N1 until the crew shut down both engines upon coming to a stop. Five of the aircraft's eight main wheel tires deflated. Airport firefighters reported that smoke and flames were emanating from the landing gear. The captain ordered an
emergency evacuation Emergency evacuation is the urgent immediate egress or escape of people away from an area that contains an imminent threat, an ongoing threat or a hazard to lives or property. Examples range from the small-scale evacuation of a building due t ...
, during which 57 passengers were injured, of whom 10 were transported to the hospital.


Investigations

Investigators from the
Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department The Civil Aviation Department (CAD) is the civil aviation authority of Hong Kong, headquartered at Hong Kong International Airport. The department is responsible for providing air traffic control services to all aircraft operating within the H ...
, the
Bureau d'Enquêtes et d'Analyses pour la Sécurité de l'Aviation Civile The Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety (BEA, ) is an agency of the French government, responsible for investigating aviation accidents and incidents and making safety recommendations based on what is learned from those inve ...
(BEA) of France and the
Air Accidents Investigation Branch The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) investigates civil aircraft accidents and serious incidents within the United Kingdom, its overseas territories and crown dependencies. It is also the Space Accident Investigation Authority (SAIA) ...
(AAIB) of the United Kingdom formed a team to investigate the accident. The
National Transportation Safety Committee The National Transportation Safety Committee (NTSC, id, Komite Nasional Keselamatan Transportasi, KNKT; literally "Transportation Safety National Committee") is an Indonesian government agency charged with the investigation of air, land, rail, ...
(NTSC) of
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
and the
National Transportation Safety Board The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incid ...
(NTSB) of the United States of America were also involved in the investigation, as were representatives of
Airbus Airbus SE (; ; ; ) is a European Multinational corporation, multinational aerospace corporation. Airbus designs, manufactures and sells civil and military aerospace manufacturer, aerospace products worldwide and manufactures aircraft througho ...
,
Rolls-Royce Rolls-Royce (always hyphenated) may refer to: * Rolls-Royce Limited, a British manufacturer of cars and later aero engines, founded in 1906, now defunct Automobiles * Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, the current car manufacturing company incorporated in ...
and Cathay Pacific. Data from the digital flight data recorder,
cockpit voice recorder A flight recorder is an electronic recording device placed in an aircraft for the purpose of facilitating the investigation of aviation accidents and incidents. The device may often be referred to as a "black box", an outdated name which has b ...
and quick access recorder were downloaded for analysis. The investigation concentrated on the engines, the engine control systems and the fuel system. Analysis of the engines found that their fuel systems were contaminated with spherical particles. The Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department Accident Investigation Division concluded that the accident was caused by these spherical particles. The contaminated fuel, which contained particles of
superabsorbent polymer A superabsorbent polymer (SAP) (also called slush powder) is a water-absorbing hydrophilic homopolymers or copolymers that can absorb and retain extremely large amounts of a liquid relative to its own mass. Water-absorbing polymers, which are cla ...
(SAP) introduced into the fuel system when the aircraft was fueled at Surabaya, subsequently caused the loss of thrust control on both engines of the aircraft during approach to Hong Kong. The SAP particles, a component of the filter monitors installed in a fueling dispenser at Juanda Airport, had caused the main metering valves of the fuel metering unit to seize. The valves were found to be stuck in positions corresponding to the recorded thrust output of each engine as it approached Hong Kong. Other engine components were found to be contaminated with the particles, while the variable stator vane controller of engine No. 2 was found to be seized. The entire fuel system, including the fuel tanks, was found to be contaminated with spherical particles. Fuel samples collected at Juanda International Airport were contaminated with the particles. The fuel supply pipeline system used to refuel aircraft at Juanda International Airport had been recently extended during construction of new aircraft parking bays. The investigation discovered that not all procedures had been followed when the system was brought back into service, and that
salt water Saline water (more commonly known as salt water) is water that contains a high concentration of dissolved salts (mainly sodium chloride). On the United States Geological Survey (USGS) salinity scale, saline water is saltier than brackish water, ...
had inadvertently entered the fuel supply. The presence of salt water compromised the filter monitors in the pipeline system, releasing the SAP particles into the fuel.


Dramatization

The incident was featured in the first episode of season 19 of the Canadian TV series ''
Mayday Mayday is an emergency procedure word used internationally as a distress signal in voice-procedure radio communications. It is used to signal a life-threatening emergency primarily by aviators and mariners, but in some countries local organiza ...
'' labeled "Deadly Descent".


See also

*
British Airways Flight 38 British Airways Flight 38 was a scheduled international passenger flight from Beijing Capital International Airport in Beijing, China, to London Heathrow Airport in London, United Kingdom, an trip. On 17 January 2008, the Boeing 777-200ER airc ...
, a
Boeing 777 The Boeing 777, commonly referred to as the Triple Seven, is an American long-range wide-body airliner developed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. It is the world's largest twinjet. The 777 was designed to bridge the gap bet ...
that lost engine power shortly before a 2008 crash-landing at
London Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the Airports of London, London airport sys ...
*
Air Transat Flight 236 Air Transat Flight 236 was a transatlantic flight bound for Lisbon, Portugal, from Toronto, Canada, that lost all engine power while flying over the Atlantic Ocean on August 24, 2001. The Airbus A330 ran out of fuel due to a fuel leak caused b ...
, an
Airbus A330-200 The Airbus A330 is a wide-body aircraft developed and produced by Airbus. Airbus conceived several derivatives of the A300, its first airliner in the mid-1970s. Then the company began development on the A330 twinjet in parallel with the A340 ...
that had fuel starvation before landing safely at
Lajes Air Base Lajes Field or Lajes Air Base (; pt, Base Aérea das Lajes), officially designated Air Base No. 4 (''Base Aérea Nº 4'', BA4) , is a multi-use airfield near Lajes and northeast of Angra do Heroísmo on Terceira Island in the Azores, Portuga ...
in the
Azores ) , motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...
*
British Airways Flight 009 British Airways Flight 009, sometimes referred to by its callsign Speedbird 9 or as the Jakarta incident, was a scheduled British Airways flight from London Heathrow to Auckland, with stops in Bombay, Kuala Lumpur, Perth, and Melbourne. On 24 ...
, a
Boeing 747-200 The Boeing 747 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2022. After introducing the 707 in October 1958, Pan Am wanted a jet times its size, to ...
that lost power on all four engines after flying through a cloud of
volcanic ash Volcanic ash consists of fragments of rock, mineral crystals, and volcanic glass, created during volcano, volcanic eruptions and measuring less than 2 mm (0.079 inches) in diameter. The term volcanic ash is also often loosely used t ...
*
Qantas Flight 72 Qantas Flight 72 (QF72) was a scheduled flight from Singapore Changi Airport to Perth Airport by an Airbus A330. On 7 October 2008, the flight made an emergency landing at Learmonth Airport near the town of Exmouth, Western Australia following ...
, a Airbus A330-300 incident over the Pacific Ocean that presented conflicting information to the flight crew


References


External links

{{Aviation accidents and incidents in 2010 Aviation accidents and incidents in 2010 Aviation accidents and incidents in Hong Kong Cathay Pacific accidents and incidents Accidents and incidents involving the Airbus A330 2010 in Hong Kong April 2010 events in Asia Airliner accidents and incidents caused by engine failure