Qantas denies rust to blame for emergency landing

Telegraph UK ^ | Last Updated: 5:01PM BST 26 Jul 2008 | By Barbie Dutter in Sydney

[Perdogg]

Safety concerns were raised as long ago as February about the Qantas aircraft that had to make an emergency landing after a 9ft hole opened up in its fuselage at 29,000 feet, it has emerged.

[Perdogg]

They are now considering the possibility that some sort of explosion occurred, but not a bomb.

[Perdogg]

“..Australian investigators who travelled to Manila are working on a theory that the aircraft may have been damaged by a pressurised container exploding in the hold, or from a broken panel coming loose on the fuselage. Exploding oxygen cylinders are also a possible line of investigation. “

[CarrotAndStick]

But wasn’t the opening strange for a bomb-like explosion? There were no jagged, crumpled edges on it.

Besides, if it was a bomb, I believe it’s quite easy to do a residue analysis.

[Daffynition]

No. It wasn't rust. Just recovering from a tarnished image. ;)

[vietvet67]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article4396805.ece

[Issaquahking]

Book marked, and watching to see what actually is going to be offered up as happening...BS, or not...

[Gay State Conservative]

A former head of the NTSB was on the tube last night and said that any aircraft that used on over-the-water routes (as this one was) is very susceptible to corrosion and must be checked carefully...and often.

[Wil H]

Qantas denies rust to blame for emergency landing

Oh Good, I just hate those IRON 747's, it the steam engines on the wings that make them so smelly....

What are these people smoking?

[Blueflag]

A lot of aluminum and fiberglass, but not much iron ... or iron oxide.

;-)

[PA Engineer]

The problem with aircraft has been the rivets. The skin (aluminum) and rivets are dissimilar metals with the rivets being more nobel. The aluminum corrodes around the rivets and the skin becomes loose until it peals away. Much of the process is not that easy to see with a rapid visual inspection.

Further, in many cases you might see a failure along the rivet perforations much like what may have happened in the Qantas incident. Think of it as perforated paper.

This is just a theory, but I would not be surprised that minimally it was a contributing factor.

[btcusn]

Not the skin and frame, but how about the fasteners?? I sure make a lot of steel and stainless fasteners for Boeing.
Jack

[hkp123]

Just like TWA 800, this Quantas flight got the infamous “center fuel tank” problem. The center fuel tank was very near this “problem” wasn’t it? That’s it!!! AAHHAA! The Nazis at the NTSB will probably blab this. They are nothing more than stooges. I haven’t flown since 1999 and I have no reason to fly now. Guess what’s next? The USA FLIGHT airline. Isn’t that what Russia did years ago? AEROFLOT.

[PA Engineer]

That is the problem. The steel is galvanically more nobel than aluminum. The aluminum corrodes until the fasteners fail. Think of a rivet hole as becoming bigger and bigger.

[A.A. Cunningham]

VH-OJK

[btcusn]

You must have made your post while I was 2 fingering mine out!! Being at sea for many years I have seen MANY examples of mixed metal corrosion. Maybe make the fasteners out of ZINC?? At least the panels would fall off while still in one piece ;)
Jack

[bert]

.......Speculation that rust contributed to the accident was also dismissed ......

Wonder what presstitute idiot speculated about rust in an aluminum air plane? The author is probably the ignorant speculator.

[RightWhale]

A missing rivet at the wing root would be a decided weakness in the skin. Once a panel opens up a little the windstream could grab it and away it goes.

[bert]

While failure along the rivet lines is likely from fatigue, I think the rivets re also aluminum and not dissimilar metal subject to galvanic action and corrosion.

[PA Engineer]

Once a panel opens up a little the windstream could grab it and away it goes.

Thanks. Slapping myself in the head. I sometimes suffer from "static" thinking. I was only involved professionally speaking from inside a hanger many moons ago. The other times I was praying from inside the plane as a passenger.