NTSB provides update on internal cracks in GE jet engines

Federal aviation investigators gave an update today on a crack discovered inside a second General Electric GEnx aircraft engine mounted on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

“The investigation is ongoing, and an initial inspection of all in-service GEnx engines has been completed,” the National Transportation Safety Board said in written statement.

The second crack was reported by The Post and Courier earlier this month. It was found in a plane at Boeing’s assembly plant in Everett, Wash. The jet in question has not been flown yet.The crack was found on an internal part called the fan midshaft.

The agency also said is still investigating the GEnx-1B engine that failed during a July 28 test run at Charleston Internaotinal Airport, where Boeing assembles some of its 787s.

Investigators took the engine to a GE plant in Cincinnati where it was built. They found that a fan midshaft fractured and are still working to determine why.They are also looking at manufacturing and assembly records for the engine.

More recently, a Boeing 747-8F equipped with GEnx-2Bs experienced a loss of power Sept. 11 on one of the engines during the takeoff roll at Shanghai Pudong International Airport in China. The safety board said preliminary findings from the Shanghai incident revealed the fan midshaft was intact and showed no indications of cracking.

That investigation also continues.