On December 22nd, a Korean Air Airbus A330-200 was close to finishing a lengthy service from Seattle to Seoul when the crew encountered an anomaly, prompting them to shut down the right-hand engine. While details on the exact cause of the incident are scarce, this is the third incident involving a Korean Air A330 within two months. More notably, this is the first Korean A330 incident to take place after the airline grounded most of its A330 fleet to perform intensive inspections.

Aircraft and incident details

The incident took place aboard Korean Air flight KE42, which departed Seattle (SEA) on December 21st. Flying for some 12 hours and crossing the international dateline, the incident took place on December 22nd as the aircraft neared its destination of Seoul Incheon (ICN). Onboard the jet were 202 passengers and 14 crew.

According to The Aviation Herald, the Airbus A330-200 registered HL8227 was descending through about 6,000 feet towards Seoul when the crew made the decision to shutdown the number two (right hand) engine. Details are scarce as to the problems encountered, with the only description of the issue being "some anomaly."

Ultimately, the aircraft performed a safe landing at Incheon's runway 34L some 12 minutes after the engine shutdown.

Flight path
Photo: FlightRadar24.com

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About the incident aircraft

Powered by Pratt & Whitney PW4000 powerplants (PW4168), the Airbus A330-200 registered HL8227 is now close to being 12 years old. Delivered to Korean Air brand new, the jet has MSN 1200 and arrived at the airline in February 2011.

Configured to seat 30 passengers in business class and another 188 in economy class, data from ch-aviation.com indicates that the airframe has accumulated some 43,796 flight hours across 7,406 cycles as of September 2022.

At the time of publication, the aircraft is still on the ground in Seoul, approximately 36 hours after landing.

Korean Air A330-200An unfortunate season for the Korean Air A330 fleet

It's been a challenging season for Airbus A330s operated by Korean Air. Prior to this most recent incident, a Korean Air Airbus A330-30 registered HL7702 had also experienced engine issues. Taking place at the end of October, Airportia reports that the aircraft was performing flight KE401 from Seoul to Sydney when one of its engines emitted bangs and streaks of flames while performing its climb to cruising altitude. This prompted the crew to level off at about 7,000 feet, shut the engine down and return to Seoul. The crew performed a safe landing on Incheon's runway 34R about 35 minutes after departure.

Of course, the most notable recent incident took place on October 23rd, when a Korean Air Airbus A330 crashed after landing at Cebu-Mactan International Airport in the Philippines. The aircraft, with 162 passengers and 11 crew on board, overshot the runway after attempting to land twice in poor weather.

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The incidents of October 23rd and October 30th prompted Korean Air to take 24 of its 29 Airbus A330s out of service for intensive inspections. An airline statement to Simple Flying read:

"To prepare for full-scale reopening, we have been inspecting safety and service procedures including ground operations at 20 airports overseas since October 23, and are taking immediate measures to enhance safety when necessary."

What do you think of this latest incident? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment below!

Sources: The Aviation Herald, FlightRadar24.com, Planespotters.net, Airportia, ch-aviation.com

  • Korean Air Boeing 787
    Korean Air
    IATA/ICAO Code:
    KE/KAL
    Airline Type:
    Full Service Carrier
    Hub(s):
    Incheon International Airport
    Year Founded:
    1969
    Alliance:
    SkyTeam
    CEO:
    Walter Cho
    Country:
    South Korea