The Hong Kong-based airline Cathay Pacific said on Monday that it would inspect its fleet of Airbus A350 planes, leading to some cancellations or delays, after the airline found “an engine component failure” on a plane that was scheduled to travel from Hong Kong to Zurich. “This component was the first of its type to suffer such failure on any A350 aircraft worldwide,” the airline said in a statement on Monday. The company’s inspection of the 48 planes, which it called a “precautionary measure,” was “well underway,” the statement added, and the airline expected it to be completed on Monday. “Thus far, we have identified a number of the same engine components that need to be replaced, spare parts have been secured and repair work is underway,” the airline said. The plane took off from Hong Kong International Airport on Monday, but it “experienced an engine failure after takeoff,” according to Flightradar24, a provider of flight data. After dumping fuel over the sea for about half an hour, the plane returned to Hong Kong’s airport, according to Flightradar24. The Airbus in question was powered by a Trent XWB-97 engine, according to Rolls-Royce, the engine’s maker. Rolls-Royce said it was “aware of an incident” on the Cathay Pacific flight from Hong Kong to Zurich, but declined to release any more information because of an active investigation into the matter. “We are unable to speculate on what caused this incident and will continue to assist the authorities in finding out exactly what happened,” James Banks, a spokesman for Rolls-Royce, said in an email. Airbus declined to comment, but Guillaume Steuer, a spokesman, said in an email that the company was “aware of the situation and in touch with Rolls-Royce as well as Cathay Pacific.” Because of the inspection, some planes will be grounded for several days, which will cause delays, Cathay Pacific said. So far, the airline said it had canceled 24 return flights through Tuesday.<br/>
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Hong Kong's Cathay Pacific Airways said on Monday it was inspecting all 48 of its Airbus A350 widebody jets after the in-flight failure of a component in an engine that is made by British manufacturer Rolls-Royce. A problem unfolded several minutes after take-off on flight CX383 from Hong Kong to Zurich on Monday, according to flight tracking service FlightRadar24. The five-year-old A350-1000 plane performed two wide circles and dumped fuel over the sea before returning to Hong Kong where it landed safely about 75 minutes after its departure. Cathay Pacific said it identified an engine component failure after the aircraft returned to Hong Kong. Cathay Pacific has not specified which engine component failed, but the carrier said it was the "first of its type to suffer such failure on any A350 aircraft worldwide". A person familiar with the matter told Reuters the incident involved a problem with a fuel nozzle inside a XWB-97 engine, the Rolls-Royce model used on the A350-1000. The Airbus A350 is a twin-aisle long-haul aircraft that can carry between 300 and 480 passengers. It comes in two sizes: the A350-900 and the larger A350-1000, both powered exclusively by Rolls-Royce engines. Explainer has more.<br/>
Passengers of the cancelled Malaysian Airlines (MAS) flight from KL International Airport (KLIA) to Seoul, South Korea, will be entitled to a refund, says the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom). Mavcom director of consumer and public affairs Pushpalatha Subramaniam said this comes under the latest amendments to Mavcom’s Malaysian Aviation Consumer Protection Code (MACPC) 2016, which came into effect on Sept 2. “Consumers have a choice whether they want to continue the journey or a refund,” said Madam Pushpalatha during a press conference at Mavcom’s office in Kuala Lumpur on Sept 2. According to Madam Pushpalatha, the new amendments under the MACPC 2016 was that passengers will be entitled to refunds if their flights are rescheduled or retimed more than three hours from the original time. She said the refunds must be given according to the original mode of payment. “If they paid by cash, then they will have to refund in cash. If it’s by credit card, then by credit card and if it’s by air miles, then reimbursement will be through air miles. It all depends on the mode of payment,” said Madam Pushpalatha. Earlier on Sept 2, an MAS flight from KLIA to Incheon International Airport, South Korea, was reported to have turned back early. According to reports, MAS Flight MH66 to Seoul departed at 11.45pm on Sept 1 after a delay from the original departure time of 11pm and landed back at KLIA at 1.29am. This comes after several incidents involving MAS flights.<br/>
Former model and singer Samantha Fox threatened to knock out a police officer's teeth after being removed from a British Airways plane, a court has heard. Fox has pleaded guilty to being drunk and disorderly during the incident, which stopped the London Heathrow to Hamburg flight from taking off on 3 December. Julianna Belinfante, prosecuting, told Uxbridge Magistrates' Court that flight staff had been made aware that Fox was was seen "walking and behaving strangely and was slurring her words, and staff could smell alcohol on her". The 58-year-old was fined £1,000 and given a 12-month community order, including up to 25 rehabilitation activity requirement days. Fox, who also admitted using threatening behaviour, causing harassment, alarm or distress to a police constable, began "behaving in a confrontational manner" towards her wife, Linda Olsen, while on the plane. After the former model began "rocking back and forth in her chair, headbutting the seat in front of her" the decision was made to return to the gate, the court heard. Police were then called to remove her from the plane. Belinfante said she was described by officers as "rude and argumentative" and was "verbally abusive" towards them as she was escorted from the airport.<br/>