What happened
On July 9, 2013, an Embraer E170 was performing a scheduled flight from Warsaw (EPWA) to Bucharest (OTP). During the takeoff roll, the flight crew received several critical cockpit warnings, specifically indicating a SPOILER FAULT, followed by FLIGHT CONTROLS NO DISPATCH and NO TAKEOFF alerts. In response to these indications, the pilot initiated an aborted takeoff at a speed of 70 knots.
The aircraft subsequently returned to the parking stand, where it was removed from service to undergo technical inspection and repairs.
The investigation
The investigation focused on analyzing the flight data recorder to determine the exact sequence of the malfunction. The data revealed that during the takeoff roll, spoiler number 5 had deflected unexpectedly, triggering the subsequent system warnings.
Technical records from the Merlin system were also reviewed to check for a pattern of similar failures. The analysis showed that between June 9, 2013, and July 30, 2013, there were no other recorded instances of spoiler malfunctions on this specific aircraft. Following the incident, maintenance crews replaced one MULTIFUNCTION - SPOILER POWER-CONTROL UNIT in accordance with the Aircraft Maintenance Manual (AMM 27-65-01).
Findings
- The primary cause of the incident was a malfunction of the MULTIFUNCTION - SPOILER POWER-CONTROL UNIT.
- The crew's decision-making and execution of the aborted takeoff procedure were determined to be correct.
- The incident was considered an isolated event, as the replacement of the faulty unit successfully resolved the issue.