Finnish F-18 engine check reveals effects of volcanic dust

[Cees Binkhorst]

REPLY TO: D66 at nic.surfnet.nl

Dacht dat ik dit al eerder vandaag had gestuurd. :(
Hoorde zojuist op RTL dat 'men' niet wil bekendmaken welke F-18's het was.
Beelden op onderstaand adres.
Lijkt me een zeer ernstige huidziekte ;)

Greot / Cees

Finnish F-18 engine check reveals effects of volcanic dust
http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/04/16/340727/pictures-finnish-f-18-engine-check-reveals-effects-of-volcanic.html
By Craig Hoyle

The Finnish air force has released images showing the effects of
volcanic dust ingestion from inside the engines of a Boeing F-18 Hornet
fighter, while it prepares to make inspections on several additional
aircraft.

Five of the air force’s Hornets were involved in a training exercise on
the morning of 15 April, just hours before the imposition of airspace
restrictions due to the ash cloud spreading from a major volcanic
eruption in Iceland.

One aircraft’s engines have been inspected so far using a boroscope,
with melted ash clearly visible on its inside surface. The air force
decided to release the images to show the potentially damaging effects
of current flight activities, says chief information officer Joni Malkamäki.

(Both images © Finnish air force)

“The images show that short-term flying can cause substantial damage to
an aircraft engine,” the air force says. Continued operation could lead
to overheating and potentially pose a threat to the aircraft and its
pilot, it adds.

Checks will soon be made on the other four aircraft involved, and some
engines will be removed to help Finnish company Patria – which provides
in-service support for the nation’s F-18 fleet – to assess the extent of
any damage caused. Its fleet comprises 55 single-seat F-18Cs and seven
two-seat trainers, with each powered by two General Electric F404-402
engines.

Finland halted air force training flights yesterday, but the air force
will continue to perform operational sorties as required, such as air
policing missions and national security tasks.

One of its BAE Systems Hawk jet trainers also flew from Kauhava air base
twice yesterday carrying an air sampling pod which collected dust from
the atmosphere at various altitudes.

**********
Dit bericht is verzonden via de informele D66 discussielijst (D66 at nic.surfnet.nl).
Aanmelden: stuur een email naar LISTSERV at nic.surfnet.nl met in het tekstveld alleen: SUBSCRIBE D66 uwvoornaam uwachternaam
Afmelden: stuur een email naar LISTSERV at nic.surfnet.nl met in het tekstveld alleen: SIGNOFF D66
Het on-line archief is te vinden op: http://listserv.surfnet.nl/archives/d66.html
**********