Vietnam Airlines A321 Engine Failure Incident (VN-A392)

Incident Overview and Flight History On March 18, 2020, Vietnam Airlines Flight VN920, an Airbus A321-231 with registration VN-A392, was preparing for a commercial flight from Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, to Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The aircraft was carrying 152 passengers and seven crew members. At 16:04 local time, the aircraft experienced an uncontained failure of Engine No. 2 while on Runway 25L. The flight crew initiated a rejected takeoff procedure and brought the aircraft to a safe stop on the runway. ## Damage and Investigation Findings The incident resulted in significant damage to the aircraft, primarily to Engine No. 2, which was an IAE V2533-A5. The High Pressure Turbine (HPT) first-stage disk fractured and was expelled from the engine, causing the fan cowling and thrust reverser to be torn away. Debris from the failure struck the runway, creating seven small holes, and damaged a nearby weather radar station. The investigation, conducted by the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) in accordance with ICAO Annex 13, focused on determining the causes of the incident without assigning liability. ## Safety Recommendations and Outcomes No passengers or crew members were injured during the incident. The CAAV issued safety recommendations to Vietnam Airlines, the engine manufacturer, and its own Flight Safety Standard Department. The investigation involved consultation with the states of manufacture for both the aircraft and the engine, and included metallurgical analysis of the failed HPT disk and review of flight recorder data.