Luggage Scanner Causes Significant Damage To British Airways Aircraft

June 24, 2013

After being left on an engine cowling, a luggage scanner was sucked into the engine causing a reported 4 million pounds of damage.

John Goglia

A baggage handler apparently left behind a luggage scanner, which caused more than $6 million of damage.

FOD is something all operators on an airport worry about. Runway debris left behind can strike an aircraft or get sucked into an engine, causing a lot of expensive damage and sometimes worse.

FOD has been a causal factor in any number of accidents and incidents; probably, the most famous one that comes to mind is the fatal crash of the Concorde on take-off from Paris. A piece of debris that had fallen from another aircraft pierced one of the Concorde’s tires, in turn sending a piece of the tire up into the wing, eventually resulting in a fuel tank rupture and fire that ultimately caused the plane to crash, killing all 109 persons on board and four people on the ground.

This latest incident occurred at London Heathrow Airport and and involved a baggage handler who apparently rested his luggage scanner gun on an engine cowling and then forgot it there. On take-off, the scanner was sucked into the engine causing a reported 4 million pounds of damage - about $6 million. Clearly, the result could have been much worse if the captain had not been able to successfully abort.

This incident should serve as another reminder of the importance of keeping track of all our tools and equipment on the ramp.

About the Author

John Goglia

John Goglia has 40+ years experience in the aviation industry. He was the first NTSB member to hold an FAA aircraft mechanic's certificate. He can be reached at [email protected].

John Goglia is an independent aviation safety consultant and Adjunct Professor at Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology and regular monthly columnist for four aviation trade publications. He was an airline mechanic for more than 30 years. He has co-authored two text books (Safety Management Systems in Aviation, Ashgate Publishing 2009 and Implementation of Safety Management Systems in Aviation, Ashgate Publishing 2011).