Boeing grounds entire 777X test fleet after discovering engine defect

Boeing has been forced to ground its entire 777X test fleet due to a failed engine component - the latest in a series of blows to the embattled manufacturer.

The 777X, Boeing's latest and most state-of-the-art aircraft, first took to the sky in 2020 but faced delays in certification by the Federal Aviation Administration, the Seattle Times reported. 

The FAA this summer gave the plane the go-ahead for test flights needed before launching passenger service.

Boeing had planned to deliver the fleet in 2025, but the discovery of a failed component connected to the jet's engine has some buyers not expecting the jet until mid-2026. 

The find was made over the weekend, after one of the test planes landed in Hawaii. 

Subsequent inspections found the same issue on two other active test plane engines. The news service Air Current first reported the news.

Boeing has been forced to ground its entire 777X test fleet, the manufacturer said

'During scheduled maintenance, we identified a component that did not perform as designed,' Boeing said in a statement to DailyMail.com.

'Our team is replacing the part and capturing any learnings from the component and will resume flight testing when ready.

'We are keeping the FAA fully informed on the issue and have shared information with our customers.'

The 777X features new GE9X engines, new composite wings, and increased cabin width and seating from its predecessors.

The component in question, a titanium piece called a 'thrust link,' connects to the GE9X engines made by General Electric (GE).

A partnership between the companies that began in 2014 saw GE become Boeing's sole engine maker for larger jets like the 777X.  

In an effort to save fuel, the companies worked to make aircraft more wedded to specific engine models, to build more efficient machines that would benefit both carriers and customers. 

The component in question, a titanium piece called a 'thrust link' (circled in red), connects to the GE9X engines made by General Electric (GE)

The path of the Friday test flight over Hawaii

Paul Adams, the head of aerospace manufacturer Pratt & Whitney, pointed out that as planes get more technically sophisticated, 'the optimization of the engine and the aircraft becomes more relevant,' as the equipment meant to mount the engines on wings and the rest of the plane is integrated to minimize drag and increase fuel efficiency.

The 'thrust link' meets this criteria, and is responsible for transferring the thrust of the engine to the airframe, through a titanium link mounted on a pylon beneath the wings.

In its statement, Boeing reiterated that each of the plane's two engines boast two of the parts, 'so there is redundancy.'

A representative further pointed out that the part is custom to the 777-9, one of two 777X variants, bigger than the 384-seat 777-8, with 426 seats.

The plane - seen here during a test flight in 2020 - was supposed to start commercial service that year, but has been repeatedly delayed

The GE-9X itself is an enormous engine, weighing about 11 tons and featuring a front fan made by GE that, at 11 feet in diameter, is the biggest of its kind.

The 777-9, meanwhile, first flew in 2020, but the FAA has yet to grant it full certification, as deliveries continue to be well behind schedule. 

In 2019, the fuselage of one the aircraft completely ruptured in pressure tests, a setback that contributed to the delay of the long-haul jet by several months,  sources told AFP at the time.

At the time, images showed the fuselage skin ripping wide open and causing the passenger door to fall out, during tests that deliberately took stress to extremes to ensure the strength of construction materials. 

As a result of the incident, the plane sustained damage behind the wing, as several sources, who insisted on anonymity, told AFP that the wing was damaged when Boeing put the aircraft body through pressure tests.

'There was a structure around the exit door that also blew off during the tests, which means there was a structure failure,' said one of the sources of the September 2019 test.

'There was a depressurization of the aft fuselage; the structure that supports the door blew off,' added a second source. 'It was not just the door; it's very serious.'

In 2019, the fuselage of one of the new aircraft completely ruptured in pressure tests, a setback that contributed to the delay of the long-haul jet by several months, sources said at the time

Since then, Boeing planes, like the 737 MAX, have continued to experience technical failures, with that plane grounded by the FAA for two years following two crashes in 2018 and 2019 that collectively killed 346.

Clearing them to fly again in 2021, officials deemed the crashes to be the result of a combination of oversight, design flaws, and inaction by Boeing brass. 

A door blowing off a brand-new 737 MAX in January, however, sparked a renewed probe by the FAA. 

Then, in July, the FAA said it would be granting authority to Boeing to commence a sequence of test flights for the 777X, in a bid to get it approved for passenger service.