A Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) flight last week from Zurich, Switzerland, to Nice, France, was canceled after the takeoff was aborted. The incident led the aircraft, an Airbus A320, to be grounded for more than 26 hours.

The rejected takeoff was believed to have been caused by an engine failure. The flight was reportedly the plane's fourth leg of the day.

Less than 30 seconds

HB-JLP, an A320-214, was operating SWISS flight 560 (LX560) on Thursday, March 16th, from Zurich Airport to Nice Côte d'Azur Airport in France. According to The Aviation Herald, the pilots were cleared for takeoff, and the aircraft began its takeoff roll down runway 28. Around 20 seconds later, the crew announced they were aborting the takeoff and slowed the plane to a speed below 20 knots.

UPDATE: 2023/03/20 10:02 EST BY CHANNING REID

A SWISS spokesperson confirmed the incident in a statement to Simple Flying on Monday.

"We can confirm that the crew of LX 560 on Tuesday, March 16th decided to abort the takeoff due to an irregularity with one of the engines. The aircraft was able to taxi normally to the parking position, the flight was cancelled and the passengers were rebooked on other flights. Neither passengers nor crew were injured, however, one passenger felt unwell, so medical assistance was called." - Michael Stief, Swiss International Air Lines Spokesperson

Data from Flightradar24.com reports that LX560 was HB-JLP's fourth flight of the day. The plane had arrived back in Zurich after previously flying a Dublin turn as LX400 and LX401. The 12-year-old A320 started its day flying from Stockholm to Zurich as LX1254.

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The engine failed

Flight tracking services have not specified the reason for the rejected takeoff, but according to The Aviation Herald, one of the CFM56 engines had failed. The incident caused the plane to remain on the ground until the morning of Saturday, March 18th, when it flew four legs – a Milan turn from Zurich and a Valencia turn from Zurich, according to Flightradar24.com.

While engine failures in all phases of flight are not very common among aircraft today, they were a fairly frequent occurrence, according to SKYbrary, an electronic aviation safety knowledge repository. The source also noted that statistics from the 1960s indicate that failures resulting in inflight shutdowns occurred at an approximate rate of 40 per 100,000 flight hours, equivalent to 1 per 2,500 flight hours, or every engine failing once per year. Today, the failure rate of the engines installed on current-generation aircraft is reportedly less than 1 per 100,000 flight hours.

A serious safety concern

Although uncommon, engine failures during takeoff, similar to HB-JLP's, can be a grave concern to the safety of passengers and crew members onboard. The aerodynamic effects of the failure and the immediate actions by the flight crew play a role in the outcome of the incident. The quick decisions of pilots, of course, are necessary to ensure a safe scenario.

Over the years, aircraft manufacturers have significantly improved their products' reliability, and turbine engines have demonstrated much better reliability than piston engines, according to SKYbrary.

Pilots can also reduce the risk of failure by maintaining the engines during their preflight inspection. This includes adequate fluids with no leaks or damage, water or other contamination is excluded from the fuel supply, and the engine performs within the published limits during the run-up procedure.

Sources: The Aviation Herald, SKYbrary, SKYbrary

• 

  SWISS

  IATA/ICAO Code:

  LX/SWR

  Airline Type:

  Full Service Carrier

  Hub(s):

  Zurich Airport

  Year Founded:

  2002

  Alliance:

  Star Alliance

  Airline Group:

  Lufthansa Group

  CEO:

  Dieter Vranckx

  Country:

  Switzerland