What happened
On February 13, 2011, an Airbus 330-243, registration EC-LKE, operated by Air Europa, was performing a scheduled international flight from Madrid, Spain, to Cancun, Mexico. The aircraft was carrying 333 passengers and 11 crew members.
While climbing through FL240, approximately 14 minutes after takeoff, the number 2 (right-hand) engine experienced a partial fan blade off event. The failure caused significant vibrations throughout the cabin and triggered ENGINE STALL and ENGINE FAIL warnings on the ECAM. The crew responded immediately, reducing the engine power to idle within five seconds and shutting down the engine entirely 3/5 seconds later.
The crew declared a MAYDAY and initiated an emergency return to Madrid-Barajas. Due to the engine failure, the aircraft performed an overweight landing at a weight of 228,400 kg. Following the landing, while taxiing, a small fire broke out in the number 4 wheel of the left main landing gear, which was quickly extinguished by airport fire services. There were no injuries among the passengers or crew.
The investigation
The CIAIAC investigation focused on the structural integrity of the engine components and the sequence of the failure. Investigators examined the right-hand Trent 772B-60 engine and specifically analyzed fan blade number 4.
Technical analysis revealed that approximately 75% of fan blade number 4 had detached, and a portion of the adjacent blade number 5 had also fractured due to the impact. The investigation utilized scanning electron microscopy and finite element analysis to study the fracture surface and the manufacturing process of the blade. The investigation also looked into the possibility of unusual loads being applied to the engine during ground operations or flight.