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Sunday, October 7, 2012

Qatar Airways Seeks 787 Engine Modification Before Delivery

Qatar Airways is refusing to take deliveries of the 30 firm Boeing 787 Dreamliners it has on order until the jet engines are modified, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Akbar Al Baker, CEO of the government-run Middle Eastern carrier, said until the mid-fan shaft defect has been fixed in the GE engines, it will not take deliveries of the new aircraft; it was scheduled to receive five Dreamliners later this year.

“Qatar Airways will not take deliveries of any 787s until the engines have the new modified midfan shaft and this is what Boeing is going to oblige,” said Akbar Al Baker, CEO of Qatar Airways.

There have been several recent incidents involving GEnx engines installed on Boeing 787s resulting from defects found on the midfan shafts of the engines.

In September, FAA issued an airworthiness directive (AD) calling for ultrasonic inspections (UI) of all GEnx-1B and 2B engines.

The National Transportation Safety Board said Boeing and GE have completed initial inspections on all affected engines in-service of Sept. 19, but the Qatar Airways chief is calling for a replacement of the engines on the 787s that are scheduled for delivery to his airline.

"The 787 has a new technology engine," Al Baker said. "However, there has been a material defect in the midfan shaft of the engine which now needs replacement and inspection at very short intervals."

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