Boeing 757-2Q8 N704X

Summary

On 9 February 2011 at about 12:30 local time, a Boeing 757-2Q8 registered N704X, operated by Delta Air Lines Inc, was involved in an incident near Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. 2 people were on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was slightly damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

9 February 2011 at 12:30

Classification

Incident

Location

Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States

Nearest airport

Minneapolis-St.Paul Internatio (KMSP)

Coordinates

44.5200, -93.1200

Aircraft

Boeing 757-2Q8

Registration

N704X

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Delta Air Lines Inc

Operating rule

Part 121: Air Carrier

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Minneapolis → Jamaica

Aircraft damage

Minor

Weather

VMC

Light

Night

NTSB number

ENG11IA016

Nobody was injured.

the failure of the right engine's fuel control unit to operate correctly when the fuel metering valve became frozen in the full open position because of corrosion on the fuel metering valve slide and sleeve, which caused the engine to be overfueled during engine start and resulted in a tailpipe fire.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

A Delta Air Lines Boeing 757-2Q8 airplane, N704X, experienced a tailpipe fire in the No.2 (right) engine, a Pratt & Whitney (P&W) PW2037, during engine start at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, Minneapolis, Minnesota. The main and aft inboard flaps and inboard flap track fairing on the right wing were blistered, charred, and delaminated, and the right main landing gear fairing was blistered. During engine start, the pilots stated that the No. 2 engine lit off immediately. The pilots stated that immediately after the engine lit off, they were distracted by a yellow glow on the right side of the airplane that grew in intensity; the captain initially thought it was an airport vehicle approaching the airplane. The pilots then heard a low frequency rumbling sound; and also heard people talking on the ground control frequency about an airplane on fire. The captain stated that when he looked back at the engine indications, the No. 2 engine fuel flow was 8,300 pounds per hour (pph); the normal is 1,000 pph. The captain then called for the engine to be shut down. The interrogation of the engine indicating and crew alerting system electronic propulsion control system page revealed several fault codes indicating that the fuel control unit (FCU) fuel metering valve (FMV) did not move to the position commanded by the electronic engine control. The disassembly of the FCU revealed corrosion on the FMV sleeve and slide. According to the FCU manufacturer, when the PW2037 engine is shut down, the FCU FMV is in the full open position. The airplane had been parked outside on the ramp in subzero temperatures for about 36 hours before the incident occurred. Naturally present water in the fuel nucleated on the corrosion on the FMV sleeve and slide, freezing it in position, which prevented it from during before engine start. The manufacturer also stated that at the time of the event, when the high pressure rotor speed was about 40 percent, the fuel flow with the FCU FMV in the full open position would be in the 8,000 pph range.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.