Pilot 24

An engine exploded on the world's biggest aircraft. The crew managed 148 system failures in 5 hours.

Qantas Flight 32 suffered an uncontained Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engine failure at 7,000 feet over Singapore in 2010. Turbine disc fragments penetrated fuel tanks, hydraulic systems, and flight control wiring. The A380 had to be manually reconfigured to fly — 148 individual system warnings and failures. The crew of five spent 5 hours managing the aircraft before landing safely with 440 passengers.

The engine failure was caused by an oil pipe that was too thin — a manufacturing defect Rolls-Royce knew about.

Should engine manufacturers be required to publish all known manufacturing defects to airlines and regulators in real time — rather than managing the disclosure?