Engine Failure by Hannah McLaughlin

Engine Failure
By: Hannah McLaughlin


Engine failure in any type of vehicle can be deadly, especially in airplanes. In larger jets and airlines, hundreds of people can be injured or killed, not to mention the millions of dollars worth in damage.

“The precautionary engine shutdowns were dealt with in accordance with the aircraft checklists. Total thrust to maintain flight was never a problem in the airplanes I flew, so the checklist dealt with the degradation caused by systems losses on the engine that was shut down. Those systems typically included generators and hydraulic pumps. Even if a system was totally lost, aircraft have backup or emergency systems allowing a safe return if the checklist procedures are followed,” Mark Holmes, retired Air force pilot, and Colson and Colson pilot said.

“There are several things that can cause engine failure. Most common is running out of fuel then engine fatigue, FOD foreign object debris (something gets sucked in to the engine like a screw, rocks and other small items) and lastly is bird strikes. Some problems an engine failure can cause are loss of electrical power, hydraulic power and cabin pressurization,” George Wainwright, Colson and Colson jet mechanic said. Engine failure is very uncommon in small planes and even more so in airlines.

“The causes are different for different engines, but not as different as some people might expect. For example, all engines, whether turbojet or piston, need fuel, air, and an ignition source to operate. Piston engines need a continuous source of ignition. Turbojet engines just need ignition for start, and are then self-sustaining. Nonetheless, both types of engines can fail with loss of ignition - the loss of ignition may just be caused by different factors. Afterburning turbofan engines can experience situations not found in non-afterburning turbofan engines.
These are most often caused by a pressure spike during afterburner ignition that propagates forward and slows -- or even stops -- the N1 fan blades and results in a situation called stagnation. On the other hand, non-afterburning turbofans can experience compressor stalls which are similar, and even caused by similar pressure spikes -- just the cause of the pressure spike is different. So, different causes like I mentioned -- but not as different as it might initially seem,” Holmes said. “I never had a total engine failure. I experienced a few engine malfunctions, such as afterburner blowouts, compressor stalls, and low oil pressure. Some of those required a precautionary engine shutdown.”





“Pilots actually spend a lot of time training just in case they encounter a problem. They train in the aircraft by simulating an engine failure by reducing engine power to idle this way they can see how the plane is going to handle. On bigger airplanes they still do this but they also train in the simulators every year when they go for training,” Wainwright said.

Pilots try to always be ready for situations like these, even though they rarely happen, it is better to always be prepared.