Poor Quality Asian Maintenance Of Qantas Planes Blamed

[Ivan L. 0]

Is this the latest Qantas engineer's tactic?

 

Plane had faults despite overhaul - The Age

 

A QANTAS aircraft just back from a maintenance overhaul in Malaysia had a string of faults including problems with its navigation systems and rudder.

 

A flight attendant also received two electric shocks in the galley of the 737, which is used on domestic routes, documents obtained by The Age show.

 

...

 

Among the other faults with the 737 and included in a technical log of defects obtained by The Age were:

 

■Movement of the pilot rudder pedals was restricted due to poor installation of the cockpit panels.

 

■ The captain's window had been scratched; a check said it looked as if it had been cleaned with "Scotch-Brite".

 

■ Cooling ducts that controlled computer temperatures were not working properly, likely causing the captain's primary instrument display and indication display screens to black out intermittently.

 

■ Equipment that allowed the air crew to report back to Qantas and vice versa stopped working.

 

■ The aircraft had "throttle stagger", which sources said meant that instead of being able to use autopilot the pilots had to adjust the power of the plane constantly.

 

Other faults included a "squeal" or leak in the captain's side window and a small turbine engine at the rear of the plane that was over-spinning.

 

Source: Click Here

[Sung 0]

Last month there was one qantas 734 sent to MAS szb for checks

[Khaled 2]

Is this the latest Qantas engineer's tactic?

 

Plane had faults despite overhaul - The Age

 

A QANTAS aircraft just back from a maintenance overhaul in Malaysia had a string of faults including problems with its navigation systems and rudder.

 

A flight attendant also received two electric shocks in the galley of the 737, which is used on domestic routes, documents obtained by The Age show.

 

...

 

Among the other faults with the 737 and included in a technical log of defects obtained by The Age were:

 

■Movement of the pilot rudder pedals was restricted due to poor installation of the cockpit panels.

 

 

Why did they accept the plane if the rudder cannot move freely in the first place?Isn't it compromising safety?

 

I know we have some of the best engineers here otherwise all the MH737 in the museum already by now.

 

And yes, we have plenty of Aussie here in KL, Singapore and some say Batam... you want to nego also don't come and bash other people freely.

 

[Sung 0]

They can't really blame others for doing bad jobs. When a company send their aircraft to 3rd party for maintenance, they normally send the representatives or rep together to observe the works and to guide what the company wants or requires. If at the 1st place the rep didn't not raise out about the standard practices or any improper methods before the acception of the aircraft after check, so, the blame should go to the rep. He or she is the one who sastified with the work.

[MIR 2]

QANTAS AGAIN !! Boeing 737 grounded in Melbourne today...

 

Grounded Qantas jet had 95 defects

By Jamie Duncan and Jeff Turnbull | August 07, 2008

 

A QANTAS jet grounded in Melbourne today because of noise from an air-conditioning fault was the same plane that returned from routine maintenance in Malaysia two months ago with 95 defects.

 

The Canberra-bound Boeing 737 jet returned to the terminal and passengers were transferred to another plane, finally leaving Melbourne 90 minutes later, just before 1pm (AEST).

 

A Qantas spokeswoman said QF850 had problems with an air-conditioning duct unit while taxiing towards the runway.

 

"It was a routine return to the terminal due to an air-conditioning fault,'' she said.

 

"Rather than delay passengers further, a replacement aircraft was arranged and the flight took off just before 1pm.''

 

The 737, registered as VH-TJU, is the same aircraft on which Qantas engineers found 95 defects that had been missed during contract maintenance work by Malaysian Airlines in Kuala Lumpur.

 

News Limited newspapers at the time said the faults included a galley that was so badly installed it was a fire risk and gave a flight attendant an electric shock.

The Qantas spokeswoman confirmed the aircraft in today's incident was the same one.

 

"As with any maintenance undertaken overseas, it (the work) was carried out with the oversight of Qantas Australian engineers,'' she said.

 

The 737 had been back in service for seven weeks after the defects were repaired, she said.

 

When asked if Qantas' overseas maintenance schedule would be reviewed following today's incident, she said: "It is not relevant, because it was unrelated to that maintenance check.''

 

A maintenance worker, who did not want to be named, said the noise from the plane's undercarriage which led to today's grounding could have been produced by a large flow of air through the faulty air-conditioning.

 

"The fault caused a lot of air and noise down into the lower side of the aircraft, into the undercarriage,'' he said.

 

A passenger said the plane was taxiing to the runway before it was turned around.

 

"The engineers were then having a look at what may have been a problem within the air-conditioning,'' passenger Matthew Smith told ABC Radio.

 

The incident was the latest in a recent run of setbacks for Australia's national airline.

 

The spate of problems started last month when an explosion ripped a hole in the fuselage of a Qantas jet en route from Hong Kong to Melbourne, forcing an emergency landing at Manila.

 

Last week, a domestic flight was forced to return to Adelaide after a wheel bay door failed to close.

 

A Qantas Boeing 767 flight turned back to make an emergency landing at Sydney airport on August 2 after a hydraulic fluid leak was discovered.

 

On Monday, a jet was grounded for almost three hours after a technical fault was discovered in a pre-flight inspection at Sydney airport.

 

Qantas chief executive Geoff Dixon admitted this week that the airline's reputation had been tainted by the incidents and said Qantas had to work hard to retrieve its good name.

 

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story...7-12377,00.html

 

 

 

[Min 6]

Qantas going too far now..... and Malaysia Airlines maintenance>? what happen? if MAS to blamed, how come there's no issues or hear anything regarding MAS Aircraft that served for how many years now? why only Qantas?

 

guys.. you decide

 

[Yusoff 1]

Dumb people makes the fuss. And media is being media; grap, tear and expose whatever that can sell...

 

IMHO, MH should retaliate! Ooops... *ehem... no... erm.. MH should respond, to the outrageous accusations.

 

SMARTLY.

[Jessnor Arif 1]

Within two month... anything can happen... why blame MH?

[Albin And 0]

As i'm in Australia at the moment I've heard of this, I just think it's poor to blame MH!

Why do they even take their planes there? Doesn't they have their own engineers in Australia.

 

Btw, this is also discussed at A.net at http://www.airliners.net/aviation-forums/g...d.main/4098279/

[Peter Smith 1]

While much of the slagging of malaysian and non-australian maintenance firms is NOT justified, it is FACT that 734 VH-TJU did infact return from Subang with 95 defects (however, please bear in mind a defect could be something very insignificant). How I don't know, as MAS is well regarded as one of the best MRO facilities in the world, and why a QF engineer/test pilot did not pick up on most of these before the a/c was handed back to QF I can't explain either.

 

Please also be aware that Qantas aren't directly blaming Malaysia for TJU's "incident", its just the media (the world over) can make a mountain out of a mole hill. Qantas as they have stated in the article above that this was unrelated, but obviously, admitted the a/c's recent maintenance history.

 

As for the engineering issue and why it isn't done in Australia. Qantas shot themselves in the foot there by closing much of their Sydney heavy maintenance facility. Also cost and time play a part. Many people can't seem to grasp that Qantas like all airlines are businesses, and businesses try to maximise their profits by sending work offshore, etc. While at the political level it isn't great, as people in Australia (for arguments sake) lose their job and is often frowned upon, any business who becomes stronger as a result will in turn grow and thus create more jobs in the long run.

 

I mean no offence, but this whole QF saga is starting to piss everyone off, both Australian's and Malaysian's alike. And if you're going to believe everything printed in the media, i'm sorry, but then you're no smarter than they are!

Edited August 8, 2008 by Liam Gibb

[Sandeep G 1]

Qantas going too far now..... and Malaysia Airlines maintenance>? what happen? if MAS to blamed, how come there's no issues or hear anything regarding MAS Aircraft that served for how many years now? why only Qantas?

 

guys.. you decide

 

 

Don't think it's QANTAS to blame here mate, but the worst paper in the entire world - THe Weak West Australian... I can testify to that cos I spent 21 years of my life reading the crap.

 

Just another crap article by a crap newspaper. Nothing to worry.

 

Concur with Liam - the 95 defects may be of all sorts of nature, big or small.. I've not seen the dossier listing the defects, so I can't compare.. anyone seen it? do share.. then and only then can ANYONE including the media make allegations against MAS Engineering/QANTAS engineering.

 

So take a deep breath, and know from your own knowledge on the subject that you're more than safe. And if you REALLY feel the need, write in to The West Australian editorial and fill in the blanks - again you do so at your own risk as you're not qualified as an employee/spokesperson of MAS, but nothing stopping you from reflecting your own opinion.

[Izanee 0]

MALAYSIA AIRLINES (E & M) CLARIFIES ON THE HMV WORK ON QANTAS B737

Friday, August 8th, 2008

 

MEDIA STATEMENT

Friday, 8 August 2008

 

Qantas had sent one of their B737-400 aircraft to Malaysia Airlines Engineering & Maintenance (MAS E & M) in Subang,Malaysia for a Heavy Maintenance Check (HMV) in May 2008.

 

 

The Australian carrier had positioned not less than 12 of their personnel in MAS E & M to oversee all activities carried out on the aircraft. They constantly monitored and audited all HMV activities, throughout the check and reported those items which they felt needed improvement.

 

 

Malaysia Airlines Senior General Manager E & M Mr. Mohd Roslan Ismail said, “All the highlights were rectified, to the satisfaction of the Qantas team, before aircraft delivery to Australia. The Qantas team had been very helpful to our personnel, to ensue maintenance standards of Qantas we strictly observed”.

 

 

With regards to the ’string of faults’ that were reported in the media, MAS E & M investigated and established that these were unsubstantiated. This is based on the fact that all these aspects were originally checked and found to be free from defect during the maintenance check and test flight, with the concurrence from the Qantas team.

 

 

As for the case of a Qantas flight attendant experiencing a static/mild electric shock, MAS E & M investigated and identified the root cause of the issue. Although it was not possible to ascertain if the defect originated from the HMV work at MAS E & M, this highlight has been incorporated as an additional

monitoring initiative for future similar work, to eliminate such instances from recurring on all aircraft handled by MAS E & M.

 

 

Roslan added, “MAS E & M is a certified approved Maintenance & Repair Organization (MRO) by the Malaysian Department of Civil Aviation, European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), and the U.S Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), among others. We are fully committed to executing all aspects of aircraft

engineering maintenance with no compromise to safety and security as well as meeting the expectations of both our customers and the global regulatory authorities that have recognized our competencies”.

 

 

“Concurrently, we are also constantly improving and enhancing our work processes, taking into consideration the latest trends and regular highlights of worldwide aircraft engineering investigation findings to ensure we remain as a leading and preferred MRO of our customers,” he said.

 

 

Issued by: Media Relations, Communications Division, Malaysia Airlines, Subang/Malaysia

 

 

For clarification, media to contact:

 

 

Anbarasu.S

 

Mobile: 6019 2224952

 

Office: 603 78403884

 

Email: Arasu@mas.com.my

 

 

 

 

[MIR 2]

Qantas cancels overseas check-ups

 

Jonathan Dart

August 9, 2008

 

QANTAS has shelved plans to send two 737 planes to Malaysia for heavy maintenance checks.

 

The decision was made while the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) investigated the airline over a series of incidents in recent weeks, including the emergency landing of a Melbourne-bound jumbo in Manila when a two-metre by four-metre hole was blown in its fuselage.

 

The airline faced another maintenance problem yesterday. Flight QF107 was prevented from flying to Los Angeles because a screw needed to be replaced.

 

The airline's decision to send its 737s to Malaysia for maintenance checks has come under intense scrutiny after the first plane sent there two months ago came back with 95 defects. It was grounded in Melbourne on Thursday because of noise from an air-conditioning fault.

 

Malaysia Airlines issued a statement yesterday defending its checks and calling Australian reports on defects unsubstantiated.

 

Two other planes were earmarked for heavy "C" checks - a regular procedure lasting more than a week, in which engineers have to check most of the airplane's parts - in Malaysia.

 

But the airline's monthly maintenance schedule put out last week showed the planes were rescheduled to be checked at Tullamarine in Melbourne.

 

As a result, checks on two other planes that were to take place at Tullamarine will now take place at Avalon in Victoria, and two planes that were to be checked at Avalon will be sent to a third party, John Holland Aviation Services, in Tullamarine.

 

"We don't know why it changed, but it's likely tied to the fact that CASA are yet to finish their investigation [into maintenance procedures]," a source said.

 

The executive general manager of engineering at Qantas, David Cox, confirmed the maintenance work will now be done in Australia. "We only have overflow heavy maintenance work undertaken overseas," he said. "We explored options for checks on two 737-400 aircraft. Once space became available at our Tullamarine facility, the decision was taken to have the work done there."

 

A CASA spokesman said the decision was made by the airline and was not the result of an order made by the authority. He confirmed that the airline has regulatory approval to conduct maintenance checks at the Malaysian base but investigations into the aircraft that returned from that facility earlier this year were continuing.

 

"It's too early to say whether [the aircraft's grounding in Melbourne] was related to the maintenance check in Malaysia or not," the spokesman said.

 

The senior general manager of Malaysia Airlines, Mohammed Roslan Ismail, defended the checks in a statement yesterday, saying Qantas had 12 personnel attached to its maintenance team.

 

"All the highlights were rectified, to the satisfaction of the Qantas team, before aircraft delivery to Australia," he said.

 

"With regards to the 'string of faults' that were reported in the media, [Malaysia Airlines] investigated and established that these were unsubstantiated.

 

"This is based on the fact that all these aspects were originally checked and found to be free from defect during the maintenance check and test flight, with the concurrence from the Qantas team."

 

http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/qantas...8139081289.html

[Kenneth T 0]

That's a pretty sad case, pointing fingers at MH when something is unforeseen.

[Peter Smith 1]

The reason QF are canning maintenance in Malaysia is to keep the media, and thus the australian public at bay. Fear not though, MH will be making money for nothing, as i'm sure QF have the pay some sort of penalty for cancelling.

[Ashmil Abd Ghani 0]

Emmm i wounder if what QF did will brake the agreements which both parties had sign before to do MRO of QF at MAS MRO facility??If it happen, did QF need to pay compensation to MAS E & M department??

 

"Better No Than Sorry"... <_>

[Min 6]

Well, If they QF want to transfer from KL to Victoria for maintenance, we'll see whether they found any problem with their maintenance. this is good. stopping them pointing to other asian engineers. let's see how good their maintenance are, seriously if i hear anu issues regarding maintenance in AU, i'll totally ANTI their carrier. and the'll be the biggest loser

Edited August 11, 2008 by Min

[Sandeep G 1]

Well, If they QF want to transfer from KL to Victoria for maintenance, we'll see whether they found any problem with their maintenance. this is good. stopping them pointing to other asian engineers. let's see how good their maintenance are, seriously if i hear anu issues regarding maintenance in AU, i'll totally ANTI their carrier. and the'll be the biggest loser

 

Why you need so much confirmation Min? The 744, and recent 767 incidents are maintained in Avalon/Brisbane... so how??

 

It's a complicated internal issue and the recent job-cuts at Qantas mean that employees - especially departments that are prone to outsourcing - are building a case to defend their jobs - Realistically, they are justified in protesting the outsourcing - but they are doing so in tandem with asking for a pay-rise - which they were declined too... So you can really see how on edge they are - and crying poor quality as a result of outsourcing maintenance is earning their cause an ear with the public via the media. So now it will become a political issue and the good old Labour government - packed with former trade unionists - will have to play fair game with business and employee unions. Not a nice place to be if you ask me.

[yeadrian 0]

mh is the current scapegoat, they tried Singapore last time too remember, its interesting that some of the news refer outsourced countries as asians....(in my opinion it sounds racist) The past Qantas maintained aircraft confirmed their technical ability is not up to par - even though they claim that it is above world standard (read between the lines, they are the highest standard in the world)

below the belt cheap shots by some parties......

MH or you know who should be more vocal to counter act, its Australian news all the time highlighting sub standard Malaysian aviation technical ability. This kind of publicity adversely affects mh, potential airlines(Not Australians of course) may think again if they want to use MH's technical expertise...

 

[Min 6]

again.... *thanks to Eric

 

[BC Tam 2]

Qantas removes Six Boeing 737-400s from Service

 

Wednesday, 13 August 2008

 

 

Qantas has removed six Boeing 737-400 aircraft from service while it cross-checks maintenance records relating to aircraft modification work carried out at one of its Australian facilities.

 

The Executive General Manager of Qantas Engineering, Mr David Cox, said the issue was one of procedure, and did not have any safety implications.

 

"Qantas discovered an irregularity with paperwork for these aircraft during an internal integrity check of maintenance records," Mr Cox said.

 

"In line with our prudent response to any maintenance issue, however minor, we have elected to suspend the operation of the six aircraft while we ensure all our records are 100% accurate and we have advised the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA)."

Copied from here

 

Well, well, well !!

[Eugene Koh 4]

Turmoil for Qantas as craft grounded

August 14, 2008

 

QANTAS yesterday grounded a 747 aircraft because a crucial piece of equipment needed urgent maintenance, leaving the plane's tail at risk of breaking away.

 

The airline confirmed that QF31, due to depart Sydney for London via Singapore, had been delayed because of "maintenance requirements associated with a horizontal stabiliser jack screw".

 

The union representing aircraft maintenance engineers warned last night that if the jack screw was not lubricated regularly it could seize up and lead to a disaster.

 

Eight years ago an Alaska Airlines MD-80 jetliner crashed off the coast of Los Angeles, killing all 88 people on board, after its horizontal stabiliser jammed.

 

Steve Purvinas, the secretary of the Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association, told the Herald: "The jack screw is an important component that has been known to seize up in the past. Regular lubrication and checking of the jack screw is vital because corrosion poses a real risk and must be eliminated to prevent this key component from seizing up."

 

He said the manufacturer, Boeing, had advised airlines that the jack screw needed to be overhauled between June last year and February. "Boeing issued a directive that this component needed to be checked more rigorously and more regularly."

 

A spokesman for Qantas confirmed that "there was a maintenance issue involving the lubrication of a jack screw on a Boeing 747-400. Qantas found this through a routine check of our maintenance records.

 

"The jack screw had been inspected and the aircraft will operate tomorrow."

 

But the spokesman rejected any comparison with the Alaska Airlines crash.

 

"There is no connection at all with any other aircraft incident. The Alaska incident involved a different aircraft type and design with different safety features," the spokesman said.

 

In a day of turmoil for Qantas, it was also revealed that a flight experienced an in-flight engine shutdown as it flew to Auckland, while a 767 was grounded in Melbourne because of a problem with the flap indicator in the cockpit.

 

A Qantas spokeswoman said all passengers aboard QF438 from Melbourne to Sydney were able to take alternative flights within 2½ hours. Qantas also confirmed that on approach into Auckland one of the four engines on its 747-300 was "reduced to idle".

 

The crew restored power and the jet landed without incident.

 

 

 

With the latest incident (Aug 13), I wonder who to blame since it was not maintain by MAS!!!!

Like everyone here in OZ says, MAs is just a scapegoat...

[H Azmal 0]

We are not at fault for Qantas incidents: MAS

 

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia Airlines has defended its engineering and maintenance (E&M) arm in light of the various media reports linking maintenance issues related to Qantas aircrafts.

 

MAS said in a statement that its E&M was a certified approved Maintenance, Repair & Overhaul organisation by 31 national aviation authorities including the Civil Aviation Safety Authority, Europea Aviation Safety Agency and the US Federal Aviation Administration.

 

"For Qantas, MAS E&M only handles heavy maintenance work for its B737-400 aircraft. To date, only one aircraft has undergone heavy maintenance, registered as VH-TJU."

 

The statement also listed out the media reports that were made about MAS with CEO, Datuk Seri Idris Jala, saying the reports were not accurate.

 

In the incident where a mid-air rupture of an oxygen bottle in a Qantas Boeing 747-400 resulted in an emergency landing in Manila, Idris said Qantas had confirmed that the aircraft was maintained in Australia and not in Malaysia as was alleged by a senior Qantas pilot.

 

In another incident where a Qantas Boeing 737-400 was grounded in Melbourne because of noise from an air-conditioning fault, Idris said Qantas had stated that the fault on the aircraft was unrelated to heavy maintenance checks done in Malaysia as was mentioned in news reports.

"The maintenance in Malaysia was done with the oversight of Qantas personnel. A total of 12 Qantas Engineering personnel were positioned at MAS E&M to provide technical oversight."

 

Idris said in the course of the maintenance, defects were found and rectified.

 

"After approvals by Qantas personnel, the aircraft flew back to Australia.

 

As for the case of a Qantas flight attendant experiencing a static/mild electric shock, Idris said it was not possible to ascertain if the defect originated from the work at MAS E&M but would be monitored to ensure it would not happen again.

Idris added that the reason Qantas recently decided against sending two of their 737-400 planes to Malaysia for maintenance was because space had become available at its facility in Melbourne and not because the first aircraft sent there had been returned with defects.

[KK Lee 5]

Qantas to bring back maintenance work from Asia

 

MELBOURNE, May 11 – Qantas Airlines will bring back from overseas all its maintenance work for the start of next year, saving more than 500 jobs in Australia.

 

Maintenance normally done overseas on the Airbus A330 will return to Australian shores – employing those who thought their tenure would finish when current Boeing 767 maintenance is phased out over the next five years, the Australian Associated Press reported.

 

Queensland State Premier Anna Bligh and Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce announced today an agreement had been reached with unions over working conditions to secure the jobs that were in danger of going offshore to Asia.

 

“It’s terrific news today that Qantas has decided to keep its heavy maintenance engineering facility here in Brisbane, employing more than 500 people,” Bligh told reporters at the Brisbane heavy maintenance Qantas hangar where the announcement was made.

 

Joyce said the key hurdle in negotiations was flexible working conditions, as the company needed maintenance crews to work longer hours to finish jobs to get the aircraft back in the air.

 

“The jobs would have dried up when the 767s retired from our fleet ... for us it’s important that we have flexible conditions – if we weren’t able to maintain them (the A330s) and be competitive globally the jobs wouldn’t have been secured here in Queensland,” Joyce told reporters.

 

“It’s been two years that we’ve been negotiating the flexibilities that were needed. It’s all about the ability for people to extend shifts, to be able to work on aircraft until the aircraft are repaired.” – Bernama

 

http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/index.p...work-from-asia-