What happened
On September 25, 2010, a Southern Air Transport Boeing 747-281F, registration N758SA, was taxiing for takeoff from Frankfurt International Airport in Frankfurt, Germany. During the taxi, the aircraft's number 3 engine, a GE CF6-50, suffered an uncontained low pressure turbine (LPT) failure.
Following the engine failure, the number 3 and number 4 engines failed to respond to thrust control inputs. There were no injuries resulting from the event.
The investigation
An inspection of the aircraft following the incident revealed significant damage to the number 3 engine's low pressure turbine. The investigation also identified impact damage to the airframe, specifically noting that the engine control cables for the number 3 and number 4 engines had been separated.