What happened
During the takeoff roll, a loud bang was heard, prompting the crew to abort the departure. The tower immediately advised the flight of extensive fire in the tail area. The pilot cleared the active runway, and the aircraft was evacuated. One passenger suffered a fractured ankle, while another sustained a sprained ankle.
The investigation
An explosion had occurred in engine two due to a failed front compressor front hub. The main fuel supply line to engine two was severed, which caused the fire. A metallurgical examination revealed that the hub fractured radially through the bore and rim in two locations, releasing two sections. Fatigue had originated at a nonconforming circumferential groove at the rear of one tie rod hole. The surface of the groove exhibited a very rough, smeared appearance and there were numerous axial cracks.
Findings
The primary contributing factor was fuel exhaustion resulting from the severed fuel line. The root cause was a manufacturing defect in the engine component. The nonconforming groove at the tie rod hole initiated fatigue cracks that led to the catastrophic failure of the front compressor hub.