‘Minor’ leaks found on Singapore A380 engines

Singapore Airlines said it had discovered five cases of oil leaks on the Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engines on its Airbus A380 planes, but insisted the planes were safe to fly.

SIA said the leaks were minor and did not pose any safety issues on the flights.

“It is correct that we have had five cases of oil leaks on Trent 900 engines but there was no safety of flight issue on any of those occasions,” a spokesman with the airline said in a statement.

“The issue that caused the leaks was identified and corrected. They were minor and we never needed to reduce power during flight.”

He said some of the leaks were discovered after a Qantas A380 plane made an emergency landing in Singapore in November last year due to a mid-air engine explosion, while the others were found before that incident.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau said in a report that the blast on the Qantas aircraft could have been caused by a possible manufacturing issue related to oil pipes on the Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engine.

The Australian safety watchdog said the problem could lead to fatigue cracking, oil leakage and potential engine failure from an oil fire.

Last month, Qantas estimated it had suffered an A$80 million (US$81.1 million) financial hit from November’s blast and resultant aircraft groundings. It said it was still discussing compensation with the British engine-maker.

SIA carried out engine checks on its own A380 fleet after the Qantas incident.