CAAC Flight Standard Department, GE hold in-flight shutdown symposium

The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) Flight Standard Department and General Electric (GE) Corporation held an in-flight shutdown (IFSD) analysis symposium on January 14th inside the No. 426 Meeting Room of the CAAC building. Vice General Engineer Wang Hong of the Flight Standard Department of the CAAC, officials and project engineers of the Maintenance Engineering Department of the Center of Aviation Safety Technology (CAST) of the CAAC, together with the engineers of GE attended the IFSD symposium. The Flight Standard Department of the CAAC made a review and conclusion on the condition of the American company’s operation in 2007. Based on the evaluation made by the CAAC department, the engines of GE -- which includes series CFM56, CF34, CF6 and GE90 -- totaled 1,646 units and comprise 61 percent of the entire quantity of all engines. The total work of GE engines reached 4,314,144 hours and occupies and comprise 64 percent of the total work time of all engines. It was also reported that there were 15 IFSD domestic transport aircraft occurrences in 2007, down by five compared to last year. Out of the 15 recorded IFSD, six are from GE, down by one compared to the same period last year. Based on the results of the CAAC investigation, among the six IFSD from GE, one is related to maintenance error and the other five were attributed to mechanical failure. Out of the five registered mechanical reasons, four IFSD were discovered by the CAAC to have malfunctioned while two were attributed to design flaws.