Airlines to be 'fully informed' if mid-air Rolls-Royce engine part failure poses wider risk

Passenger plane engine maker Rolls-Royce has pledged to keep airlines "fully informed" if an apparent mid-air part failure poses a wider risk.

The UK firm was reacting to an incident aboard a Cathay Pacific Airbus A350-1000 plane on Monday that saw it forced to return to Hong Kong soon after beginning a trip to Zurich.

Investigations were focusing on a fuel nozzle inside the Trent XWB-97 engine, according to Reuters news agency.

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That is the Rolls-Royce model used on all the A350-1000s.

Cathay Pacific said that 24 flights had been cancelled to allow for checks across its A350 fleet in the wake of the incident.

Sky News has approached UK operators of the A350-1000 planes, which are understood to include British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, for a statement.

But Reuters, citing sources at international carriers, said that other airlines had not yet been issued any instructions to examine their engines and that data from flight tracking service FlightRadar24 showed planes of other major operators flying normally on Tuesday.

Rolls-Royce shares fell 6% on Monday after the Cathay Pacific groundings first came to light.

The company said in a statement on Tuesday morning: "Rolls-Royce notes the airline's statements that it has launched a precautionary inspection of its fleet; and also that, to the extent that any components need replacing, spare parts have been secured and the replacement can be completed whilst the engine is on-wing.

"As well as providing support and guidance to Cathay Pacific, Rolls-Royce will also keep other airlines that operate Trent XWB-97 engines fully informed of any relevant developments as appropriate."

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Airbus said it was in contact with Rolls-Royce and Cathay Pacific and offering "full technical support".

Although the part failure occurred on one of its 18 A350-1000 jets, Cathay Pacific said it was also inspecting its 30 A350-900s as a "precautionary measure".

The airline said it had "identified a number of the same engine components that need to be replaced" but did not say on which model aircraft.