Posts about: "Fuel Cutoff" [Posts: 181 Pages: 10]

ignorantAndroid
2025-06-20T04:57:00
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Post: 11906593
Originally Posted by Lead Balloon
Just so I have this clear, are you saying that the implementation of the TCMA functionality involved no new components being added to the pre-existing FADEC? Are you saying, in effect, that the two switch relays described in the TCMA patent application, which relays and their configuration achieves the described two channel redundancy, were already there as components or are mere depictions of what the software does itself?

I am not suggesting you are wrong and, as I've said before, the descriptions and schematic in the patent application are just 'big hands / small maps' concepts. However, if TCMA functionality "is simply a bit of software in the FADECs", merely sending a 1 or 0 or other signal into a point in the pre-existing FADEC that already had control over fuel cutoff (with the TCMA software merely monitoring data busses, rather than direct sensor outputs, to work out thrust lever position and whether or not the aircraft is 'on the ground' for TCMA purposes) I for one would really like to know that for sure and get my head around the implications.
Originally Posted by Someone Somewhere
That is the implication I have heard all along, particularly from tdracer's posts.

It uses existing thrust-lever-angle inputs, existing N1 inputs, and (presumably) existing WoW inputs, does software stuff inside the ECU, and if necessary uses the existing overspeed cutout outputs to stop the engine.
I don't have any direct knowledge, but yes, that's my understanding based primarily on tdracer's comments. It also just makes sense. I'm pretty confident that all the necessary hardware already existed because of the need for N2 overspeed protection. A failure in one FADEC channel could drive the FMV fully open, leading to an overspeed and uncontained engine failure. For regulatory purposes, it would be unacceptable to have a single point of failure with catastrophic consequences, so it would be necessary to make the inactive FADEC channel capable of cutting off fuel in that case.

The air/ground signal would've already been present as well. It would be needed for switching between ground idle, flight idle, and approach idle. Tdracer has discussed that as well, in past threads.

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Musician
2025-06-20T05:30:00
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Post: 11906603
TCMA things, imagination and evidence

Originally Posted by neila83
You may be surprised to know that TCMA doesn't require that, it just requires a differential between commanded and actual thrust.

It has never triggered during takeoff until now. Maybe it still hasn't been. We'll see. Given there is an actual example of a 787 in the wild shutting down both of it's engines when it shouldn't (ANA), I'm surprised how complacent people are that this couldn't be the cause..Software can always have weird corner failures that could never have been thought of or tested.
Yes. I simplified. The point stands that the throttle needs to be pulled back, as it was in the ANA event, because that was a landing and not a take-off.

Originally Posted by user989
V. Shutdown of engines by TCMA
A parallel is drawn to the ANA incident. However, this would require not only a fault in the air/ground logic but also a sensed discrepancy between T/L position (not necessarily idle) and thrust output on both engines simultaneously.
First, you posted a good summary. I'd have added "unanticipated hardware fault" and "unanticipated software fault" as generic causes.

Note that the thrust lever actuators are wired to the FADECs, and that the TCMA gets the T/L position from that. For TCMA to trigger, it has to determine that its FADEC (on that engine) failed to achieve a commanded reduction in thrust. So we're either looking at a weird, unprecedented edge case, or a FADEC failure, or both.


Originally Posted by Lead Balloon
Just so I have this clear, are you saying that the implementation of the TCMA functionality involved no new components being added to the pre-existing FADEC? Are you saying, in effect, that the two switch relays described in the TCMA patent application, which relays and their configuration achieves the described two channel redundancy, were already there as components or are mere depictions of what the software does itself?
It has been mentioned before that this capability existed as part of the N2 overspeed protection: the FADEC would shut down a runaway engine by cutting its fuel before it disintegrates.
Originally Posted by Lead Balloon
I am not suggesting you are wrong and, as I've said before, the descriptions and schematic in the patent application are just 'big hands / small maps' concepts. However, if TCMA functionality "is simply a bit of software in the FADECs", merely sending a 1 or 0 or other signal into a point in the pre-existing FADEC that already had control over fuel cutoff (with the TCMA software merely monitoring data busses, rather than direct sensor outputs, to work out thrust lever position and whether or not the aircraft is 'on the ground' for TCMA purposes) I for one would really like to know that for sure and get my head around the implications.
The thrust lever sensors are wired directly to the FADEC (and hence the TCMA). No data bus is involved with this item.

With a MCAS crash, it required a hardware problem with an AOA sensor, used as input to a correctly working MCAS, to cause the aircraft to behave erratically. With a correctly working TCMA, I believe it'd require two hardware problems to get TCMA to shut down the engine, as there'd have to be an implausible thrust lever reading, and a FADEC/engine failure to process it within the TCMA allowed range ("contour"?). On both engines, separately and simultaneously.

That leaves a software problem; it's not hard to imagine. The issue is, at this point it's just that: imagination. I could detail a possible software failure chain, but without examining the actual code, it's impossible to verify. We simply don't have the evidence.
I could just as well imagine a microwave gun frying the electronics on both engines. An escaped hamster under the floor peeing on important contacts. A timed device installed by a psychopathic mechanic. There's no evidence for that, either.

This process is a way to psychologically cope with the unexplained accident, but because it lacks evidence, it's not likely to identify the actual cause. We've run the evidence down to "most likely both engines failed or shut off close to rotation, and the cause for that is inside the aircraft". Since the take-off looked normal until that failure, we have no clues as to the cause hidden inside the aircraft. We need to rely on the official investigation to discover and analyse sufficient evidence. The post-crash fire is going to make that difficult.

"Both engines failed or shut off close to rotation" explains all of the evidence : it explains an unremarkable take-off roll, loss of lift, absence of pronounced yaw, loss of electrical power, loss of the ADS-B transponder, RAT deployment, the noise of the RAT banging into place and revving up, emergency signs lighting up, a possible mayday call reporting loss of thrust/power/lift, and a physically plausible glide from a little over 200 ft AAL to the crash site 50 feet (?) below aerodrome elevation .
It explains what we saw on the videos, what the witness reported, where the aircraft ended up, and the ensuing sudden catastrophe.

I don't believe we have evidence for anything else right now—I'd be happily corrected on that.

-----
Edit: the evidence of the crash photo with the open APU inlet door, and the main gear bogeys tilted forward, are also explained by the dual engine failure/shut off.

Last edited by Musician; 21st Jun 2025 at 06:48 . Reason: more evidence

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Raffael with FF
2025-06-20T11:04:00
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Post: 11906838
Let me try to answer the questions about which I have some knowledge, as an aerospace engineer:
(I am not sufficiently informed to answer Q4,6 and 7, at the moment)

Originally Posted by soarbum
Q1: Am I correct in that assumption that when on the ground, overspeed with respect to EITHER resolver A OR resolver B can trigger TMCA?

We have been told that the logic (ie true or false) signal G is determined from the Weight-on-wheels sensors and the RadALT. It is reasonable to suppose that the designers still wanted TMCA to function after a hard landing where some landing gear components had failed.
Yes, overspeed on either resolver channel A or B alone will trip the TMCA fuel-cut logic


Originally Posted by soarbum
Q2: When the nosewheel lifts off but the MLG is still on the ground and RadALT is close to ground, will G still be true?
G is a single Boolean that FADEC derives from Weight-On-Wheels (MLG and NW) and radio-altimeter. Iit stays \x93ground\x94 until all WOW sensors go inactive (i.e. every wheel is off the runway) and the RadALT exceeds its airborne threshold.


Originally Posted by soarbum
Q3: Is there a slow filter (Tc>=1s) in the ground/air logic which could have caused a slight delay before G became false after takeoff further extending the opportunity of TMCA to activate?
That's very unlikely. Ground/air logic uses small hysteresis (tens to a few hundred ms), but not in the multi-second range



Originally Posted by soarbum
At that point, the total energy of the system would have comprised of the kinetic energy of the aircraft travelling at Vr, the rotational inertia of the engines and the potential energy of whatever fuel is beyond the cutoff valves.
Q5: Would this total energy have been sufficient to get the aircraft 100ft into the air?
Let's do the math very quickly:
Kinetic energy with a weight of 200,000kg, at Vr = 150kn = 77m/s: E_kin = 600MJ
Rotational energy of a GEnX engine is hard to calculate as I don't find reliable values for the rotary inertia. I found some for a GE90 and could roughly estimate 100MJ of rotational energy for each engine. However, I seriously doubt that this energy could be effectively used to gain thrust, as the thrust will drop very quicjkly after the fuel is cut off.
the required potential energy for a 100ft climb of a 200,000kg 787 is around 70MJ.

This ignores aerodynamic drag, still, 100 ft of climb remains energetically feasible.
However, it as been pointed out several times that the actual climb was higher than 100ft. Already for 200ft I would doubt the validity of my statement above.

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MaybeItIs
2025-06-20T11:21:00
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Post: 11906857
Originally Posted by Musician
It would definitely be nice to narrow that down; I can't do it, and your method is not convincing me.
I'd agree, without expert knowledge there would have to be big assumptions, but I expect that Aircraft Flight Engineers could do it. Probably already have.

The ADS-B datagrams sent by the aircraft show a much diminished climb rate with decaying speed, betraying insufficient thrust in that phase of the flight. That somewhat contradicts your assertions.
Sure, actual data is usually more accurate than eyeballed stuff. But not always. In fact, it's often the eye that determines that something measured or calculated is "Off". How accurate is ADS-B data? I've seen FR24 tracks go way off course then suddenly get corrected / interpolated, frequently. The erroneous data seems to be "removed" by their algorithm, but where are the errors arising? Why this inaccuracy, and therefore, how accurate are the datagrams referred to? I know there were no datagrams received during the backtrack that I accept actually occurred, but that's completely different from receiving erroneous ADS-B data.

I also do not have faith in anyone's ability to watch the cctv video and confidently determine through mere eyeballing that the climb rate did not decay by 15% within the first 100 feet or so.
Sure, the CCTV footage I've seen is very poor, a video, moved about and zoomed, of the CCTV screen. Not easy to judge, but still useful and could be analysed frame-by-frame to compensate for all the extraneous input. Anyway, it's obvious to me that the rate of climb dropped abruptly just before the flight attained its apex, as if thrust was suddenly cut off. Knowing the momentum to altitude conversion, it might be possible to estimate whether that's true or not. The evident RAT deployment supports engine shutdown, not just engines to Idle, doesn't it? In that case, it would be useful to know at what altitude the engine shutdown took place.

(The ADS-B data suggests the speed diminished 7% for ~50 ft of climb.)
Okay, didn't know that, I guess suggests means it's uncertain? Can you tell me from what height to what height it suggests this?

And why all the wrong figures for the height attained, quoted in previous thread? Can't all be the atmospheric conditions.

Other than your stone, even a glider can convert speed to altitude.
Haha! Even a stone (the right shape) can do that, and I'm not disputing that kinetic energy can be converted to altitude. Wings are useful for that... Just curious to get an idea of how much in this case.

To be honest, i believe that taking a lot of the evidence into consideration, it is possible to arrive at a limited number of scenarios for what is most likely to have happened.

One fact that alters things substantially is whether the survivor's impression is correct that possibly the engines started to spool up again just before impact. If that's the case then what does that do to the possibility or otherwise that the TMCA system caused a dual engine shutdown?

To me, since the world seems to be watching this forum, and we are getting no feedback from the authorities, what is posted here might be useful in helping the investigators look at things they might not have considered. Besides, as Icarus2001 has kindof suggested, it's probably a very good thing that there are clearly lots of keen eyes on this.

Last edited by MaybeItIs; 20th Jun 2025 at 11:29 . Reason: Missing [/QUOTE]

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Lead Balloon
2025-06-20T11:38:00
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Post: 11906873
Originally Posted by Innaflap
Ahah! Logic raises the questions.

What happens when the 2 disparate processes that form TCMA disagree?
We have an authoritative answer to that question, but only if the TCMA implemented in the FADEC used on the 787 engines functions in the way described in conceptual documents: If one of the two TCMA 'channels' for an engine 'thinks' the shut off criteria are satisfied but the other channel doesn't, the channel which 'thinks' the shut off criteria are satisfied 'wins' and the fuel shut off valve for that engine is therefore given a shut off signal.

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Luc Lion
2025-06-20T11:51:00
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Post: 11906889
I perfectly understand that there is much talking about TCMA here.
There is no direct evidence of what caused the crash but several indirect evidences point towards a near simultaneous shutdown of both engines without any visual clue of a catastrophic mechanical mishap. This leads to suspecting near simultaneous fuel starvation of both engines.
As the purpose of TCMA is shutting down the High Pressure Shut-Off Valve (HPSOV) and thus the fuel feed of an engine, it's normal to collect information on TCMA, on how it works, and on what data feeds it.

However, I hardly understand why there is no similar discussion about the spar valves and the systems that control their opening and closure.

I understand that the B787 spar valves are located in the MLG well, or at least are maintained from within that well.
If the engine shutdown happened when the gear retraction was commanded, that's a location commonality (although it's very unlikely that a mechanical problem happened in both wells at the same time).
Also I understand that there are several systems that command the opening or closing of the spar valves:
- opening: "Engine control panel switch" set to "START", or "Fuel control switch" set to "RUN"
- closing: "Engine fire handle" pulled out. (I wonder if "Fuel control switch" set to "CUTOFF" also closes the spar valve).
Are there direct wires running from these controls to the valves or is there a pair of control units receiving these signals and controlling the valve actuators?
If the latter is true, where are these control units? I guess that the likely location is the aft EE bay. Are they beside each other?

Last edited by Luc Lion; 20th Jun 2025 at 12:57 .

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Innaflap
2025-06-20T12:08:00
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Post: 11906904
Originally Posted by Lead Balloon
We have an authoritative answer to that question, but only if the TCMA implemented in the FADEC used on the 787 engines functions in the way described in conceptual documents: If one of the two TCMA 'channels' for an engine 'thinks' the shut off criteria are satisfied but the other channel doesn't, the channel which 'thinks' the shut off criteria are satisfied 'wins' and the fuel shut off valve for that engine is therefore given a shut off signal.
And each FADEC is unique to the engine in which it is hosted. So whilst these may be "autonomous" they still rely on data external to the engine itself such as WoW and Rad Alt where they hold more "sway" than they do in the flight deck.

Are these values recorded in the FDR?

Are values from the FADEC recorded?

Musician
2025-06-20T12:13:00
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Post: 11906909
Flightradar24 and ADS-B

Thank you for your reply! There's a lot we agree on; unfortunately, I'll be cutting that from my response here.
Originally Posted by MaybeItIs
Sure, actual data is usually more accurate than eyeballed stuff. But not always. In fact, it's often the eye that determines that something measured or calculated is "Off". How accurate is ADS-B data? I've seen FR24 tracks go way off course then suddenly get corrected / interpolated, frequently. The erroneous data seems to be "removed" by their algorithm, but where are the errors arising? Why this inaccuracy, and therefore, how accurate are the datagrams referred to? I know there were no datagrams received during the backtrack that I accept actually occurred, but that's completely different from receiving erroneous ADS-B data.
Right. ADS-B is transmitted via radio, so reception can be patchy, or obstructed by someone else transmitting on the same frequency (e.g. other aircraft), so not every datagram that the aircraft sends gets received. When that happens, the live display of FR24 assumes the aircraft kept doing what it did, and when another datagram eventually comes in, it corrects the position. It also connects the locations of these datagrams, regardless of whether the aircraft actually went there. For example, in the AI171 there's a 4-minute gap between a datagram sent on the taxiway, and the next datagram sent when the aircraft was off the ground towards the departure end of the taxiway. FR24 then connected these points via the shortest route; but we know that the aircraft actually used the intervening 4 minutes to taxi to the approach end of the runway, where it then started its take-off run. So that was false. (Another source of errors is when different FR24 receivers don't have synchronised clocks, so a mixture of data from these can have weird artifacts as a result.)
However, the datagrams that FR24 actually received were correct. They contain the GPS position of AI171 and its unadjusted barometric altitude, as determined by its onboard instruments. This data is as reliable as the instruments themselves are. (An example here is that the NTSB wasn't sure that the altimeter on the Blackhawk that crashed at Washington-Reagan was accurate; if that is the case, the ADS-B data would also be affected.)

On their blog post at https://www.flightradar24.com/blog/f...rom-ahmedabad/ , FR24 have published the data that they actually received.

Sure, the CCTV footage I've seen is very poor, a video, moved about and zoomed, of the CCTV screen. Not easy to judge, but still useful and could be analysed frame-by-frame to compensate for all the extraneous input. Anyway, it's obvious to me that the rate of climb dropped abruptly just before the flight attained its apex, as if thrust was suddenly cut off.
Have you ever seen a parabolic trajectory from "the short end"?
Knowing the momentum to altitude conversion, it might be possible to estimate whether that's true or not. The evident RAT deployment supports engine shutdown, not just engines to Idle, doesn't it? In that case, it would be useful to know at what altitude the engine shutdown took place.
Yes.

(The ADS-B data suggests the speed diminished 7% for ~50 ft of climb.)
Okay, didn't know that, I guess suggests means it's uncertain? Can you tell me from what height to what height it suggests this?
It's uncertain because the 787 rounds all altitudes it sends to the nearest multiple of 25. The altitudes sent were from 575 ft to 625 ft., but that's MSL and not adjusted for the weather: low air pressure makes that number higher than the actual altitude. FR24 adjusted this to 21ft climbing to 71 ft, but it could've been 30 to 60 or maybe 10 to 80, as it's rounded. I think it's fairly close to 50 feet of climb, though.

And why all the wrong figures for the height attained, quoted in previous thread? Can't all be the atmospheric conditions.
1) people taking the MSL altitude literally (625 ft)
2) people adjusting for airport elevation (189 ft), but not for pressure: 437 ft
3) people adjusting for pressure, some adjusting for temperature, get 71 to ~100 feet for the last recorded altitude.
But while ADS-B reception was lost then (or the transmitter lost power), the aircraft continued climbing; examine the cctv video, knowing the wingspan is ~200 feet, we see that the aircraft reached 200 feet but not much more.

One fact that alters things substantially is whether the survivor's impression is correct that possibly the engines started to spool up again just before impact.
The survivor likened the sound to a car engine revving up. If you've listened to a good version of the phone video, you'll have noticed the "vroom" sound at the start that some likened to a motorcycle. That sound is the RAT in action, and you can imagine what that would sound like when it rapidly spins up: like a driver stepping on the throttle with their car engine in neutral.
If that's the case then what does that do to the possibility or otherwise that the TMCA system caused a dual engine shutdown?
The RAT deploying is a consequence of a dual engine shutdown. It says nothing about whether the TMCA was involved.

[Now I just hope your post is still there as I post this. ]

Last edited by Musician; 20th Jun 2025 at 12:26 .

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Capn Bloggs
2025-06-20T15:49:00
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Post: 11907075
Disclaimer: the numbers I mention are from publicly available sources, namely Wiki (for the ZFW weight calculation) and a Boeing FCOM dated 2010, and my own estimations.

Strange, as I would have estimated this quite differently based on layman's intuition. If one assumes average values, then the approximate flight profile of AI171 according to layman's guidance certainly fits a situation in which the engines failed at or even very shortly before rotation.
IMO, if those engines failed just after rotation, there is no way that jet would have got anywhere near 200ft, especially if the fuel was "cut off", as opposed to back to Idle.

​​​​​​​ Is VR about 20 to 30 knots above the landing speed?
At 420k lbs (310k lb ZFW+110k lb Fuel), the (takeoff) V2 Flap 5 is 157kts. The (landing) Vref for Flap 5 I estimate to be at least 160kts (the FCOM I have has no figures for Flap 5 landings; F20 Vref is 154; the manoeuvre speed for Flap 5 is 189). Typically, you'd probably be at V2+15 when you get established in the climb after rotation.

​​​​​​​ Would these 20 to 30 knots of additional energy be sufficient to lift the aircraft to a good 200 ft during and after rotation?
No. With a pitch attitude of around 15\xb0, that's quite a bit of weight being supported not only by the wings but by the engine thrust vector. Cut that and you stop going up very quickly. Note Sailvi's comment above.

​​​​​​​ If the angle of attack is then successively reduced, wouldn't the airplane still have enough lift to glide for a few seconds before losing all or nearly all lift?
ANY reduction in pitch attitude would cause the climb to cease immediately. These aircraft are going so slowly, relatively, and the drag is so high that any small change in pitch attitude will cause an increase in descent rate with very little increase in speed (or no lessening of deceleration).

​​​​​​​ Wouldn't it be the case that if the thrust had only ceased five seconds after rotation, the aircraft would then have reached a good 250 ft with the engines still running and then another good 200 ft in normal conditions before the speed was used up to about 150 kn?
Not IMO. Basically, the only reason this jet is flying is because of the whopping long thrust vector out the back. It's already almost back at minimum speed anyway for flap 5 so there is very speed to trade. In this case, I wouldn't be trading anything, because the speed reduction rate would be too fast.

​​​​​​​ AI171 probably didn't reach an altitude of 400 to 500 ft above ground (in relation to the airport), did it?
My estimate is around 200ft (one wingspan) and I hypothesise the engines were producing plenty of thrust until about 7 seconds, before it stops climbing at around 12 seconds after liftoff.

@Brace , I think you're exaggerating the residual thrust effect at lower RPMs. Of course 70% would get you round the pattern but you're at a much lower drag config and you're going much faster, again less drag. And are improved-climb takeoffs in the 787-8 even a thing? I can't see a two-stage rotation.

I've made up a YT combo video:

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EXDAC
2025-06-20T17:12:00
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Post: 11907144
tdracer posted - " Commanded engine cutoff - the aisle stand fuel switch sends electrical signals to the spar valve and the "High Pressure Shutoff Valve" (HPSOV) in the Fuel Metering Unit, commanding them to open/close using aircraft power. The HPSOV is solenoid controlled, and near instantaneous. The solenoid is of a 'locking' type that needs to be powered both ways (for obvious reasons, you wouldn't want a loss of electrical power to shut down the engine). The fire handle does the same thing, via different electrical paths (i.e. separate wiring)."

Search this thread for "HPSOV" if you need confirmation of the quote.

Note there are two shut off fuel valves per engine - the HPSOV and the Spar valve. Both stay where they are if power is lost.

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EDML
2025-06-20T17:18:00
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Post: 11907146
Originally Posted by EXDAC
tdracer posted - " Commanded engine cutoff - the aisle stand fuel switch sends electrical signals to the spar valve and the "High Pressure Shutoff Valve" (HPSOV) in the Fuel Metering Unit, commanding them to open/close using aircraft power. The HPSOV is solenoid controlled, and near instantaneous. The solenoid is of a 'locking' type that needs to be powered both ways (for obvious reasons, you wouldn't want a loss of electrical power to shut down the engine). The fire handle does the same thing, via different electrical paths (i.e. separate wiring)."

Search this thread for "HPSOV" if you need confirmation of the quote.

Note there are two shut off fuel valves per engine - the HPSOV and the Spar valve. Both stay where they are if power is lost.
And that\x92s the only way it makes any sense.

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Crossky
2025-06-20T21:16:00
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Post: 11907327
Hello, this is my first post on pprune; as a 787 pilot I’m also puzzled by this accident. All seem to agree that for some reason there was a complete electrical failure and RAT deployment. With a complete electrical failure all six main fuel pumps fail. Each engine also has two mechanically driven fuel pumps. On takeoff, if there is fuel in the center tank, it will be used first, pumped by the two center tank pumps.
My airline’s manuals don’t go into much detail, but I read on another site that if both the center tank pumps fail, the engine driven pumps aren’t able to suction feed well enough from the center tanks to sustain engine operation. If there was fuel in the center tanks, a complete electrical failure would soon lead to center tank fuel pumps failure (all fuel pumps failure as stated previously) and fuel starvation of both engines. A rescue from this situation would be an immediate selection of both center tank fuel pumps OFF (not if my airline’s non-normal checklists) and waiting for successful suction feed from the L and R main tanks to occur, this would take a number of seconds.

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MaybeItIs
2025-06-20T22:57:00
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Post: 11907382
Originally Posted by Crossky
Hello, this is my first post on pprune; as a 787 pilot I\x92m also puzzled by this accident. All seem to agree that for some reason there was a complete electrical failure and RAT deployment. With a complete electrical failure all six main fuel pumps fail. Each engine also has two mechanically driven fuel pumps. On takeoff, if there is fuel in the center tank, it will be used first, pumped by the two center tank pumps.
My airline\x92s manuals don\x92t go into much detail, but I read on another site that if both the center tank pumps fail, the engine driven pumps aren\x92t able to suction feed well enough from the center tanks to sustain engine operation. If there was fuel in the center tanks, a complete electrical failure would soon lead to center tank fuel pumps failure (all fuel pumps failure as stated previously) and fuel starvation of both engines. A rescue from this situation would be an immediate selection of both center tank fuel pumps OFF (not if my airline\x92s non-normal checklists) and waiting for successful suction feed from the L and R main tanks to occur, this would take a number of seconds.
Great first post (IMMHO!) If this is correct, then I think you are onto something very significant. No expert, just an outside the box thinker who has been trying to see what ordinary (non-pilot-blaming) explanations there could be for a near simultaneous dual engine failure. I imagine a complete electrical failure leading to fuel starvation from lack of pump feed pressure from the centre tank would not result in apparently near simultaneous engine failure, but who knows? (Aren't there (suction) bypass valves here, but maybe they get stuck after long non-opening - instead long subject to closing pressures?) This could have been the case here as my experience suggests the probabilities aren't small.

FWIW, according to earlier posts, the fuel load was about 50T, leaving about 18T in the centre tank, so (I think) about 25-30% full. A full centre tank might allow engine pump suction to work fine, but this might not? (Contrary to what some have said.)

Anyway, FWIW, not everyone agrees with RAT Deployment - see recent post by shep69. Would love to know why he doesn't go with RAT deployment...

EDML
2025-06-20T23:08:00
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Post: 11907388
Originally Posted by Crossky
Hello, this is my first post on pprune; as a 787 pilot I\x92m also puzzled by this accident. All seem to agree that for some reason there was a complete electrical failure and RAT deployment. With a complete electrical failure all six main fuel pumps fail. Each engine also has two mechanically driven fuel pumps. On takeoff, if there is fuel in the center tank, it will be used first, pumped by the two center tank pumps.
My airline\x92s manuals don\x92t go into much detail, but I read on another site that if both the center tank pumps fail, the engine driven pumps aren\x92t able to suction feed well enough from the center tanks to sustain engine operation. If there was fuel in the center tanks, a complete electrical failure would soon lead to center tank fuel pumps failure (all fuel pumps failure as stated previously) and fuel starvation of both engines. A rescue from this situation would be an immediate selection of both center tank fuel pumps OFF (not if my airline\x92s non-normal checklists) and waiting for successful suction feed from the L and R main tanks to occur, this would take a number of seconds.
Sorry but that doesn't really make sense. Once the power failed and all pumps are off where is the point of switching of the center fuel pumps off? Without power they aren't running anyways.
Furthermore the preference of the center tank while it's filled is just by the higher fuel pressure those center pumps deliver. There is no valve that controls that, which might be triggered by switching off pumps.

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TURIN
2025-06-20T23:34:00
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Post: 11907392
Originally Posted by Seamless
Just for me to understand: How would you shut off the engine driven pumps if there is no electrical connection whatsoever? If there is a "powered" valve, wouldn't this (also) cut fuel suppy in case of a complete electrical failure?
The fuel shut off valves are fail safe open.
This has been mentioned several times.

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EXDAC
2025-06-20T23:51:00
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Post: 11907396
Originally Posted by TURIN
The fuel shut off valves are fail safe open.
Wouldn't "fail safe open" imply that the valves would open on loss of control signals or power. They don't. They stay just where they were before loss of power or control signal. If I understood tdracer's description of the HPSOV it can only be open or closed. That's not true of the spar valves which are motor driven and can stop in any intermediate position if power is lost.

The only way this is relevant to the accident is if the shut off valves had been commanded closed and then power had been lost. The valves would not open.


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KingAir1978
2025-06-21T00:26:00
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Post: 11907405
Originally Posted by Crossky
Hello, this is my first post on pprune; as a 787 pilot I’m also puzzled by this accident. All seem to agree that for some reason there was a complete electrical failure and RAT deployment. With a complete electrical failure all six main fuel pumps fail. Each engine also has two mechanically driven fuel pumps. On takeoff, if there is fuel in the center tank, it will be used first, pumped by the two center tank pumps.
My airline’s manuals don’t go into much detail, but I read on another site that if both the center tank pumps fail, the engine driven pumps aren’t able to suction feed well enough from the center tanks to sustain engine operation. If there was fuel in the center tanks, a complete electrical failure would soon lead to center tank fuel pumps failure (all fuel pumps failure as stated previously) and fuel starvation of both engines. A rescue from this situation would be an immediate selection of both center tank fuel pumps OFF (not if my airline’s non-normal checklists) and waiting for successful suction feed from the L and R main tanks to occur, this would take a number of seconds.
I am not a Boeing pilot, but a Bus pilot. I believe that what you're describing is prevented by the certification regs for transport category airplanes.

On the 320 (equipped with the old system (fuel pumps), not the newer system (transfer valves)) the center tank pumps are inhibited when the airplane is airborne with the slats extended.

Check these certification rules:

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-14/section-25.953
and
https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-1...-25#p-25.903(b )



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fdr
2025-06-21T01:04:00
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Post: 11907425
Originally Posted by Crossky
Hello, this is my first post on pprune; as a 787 pilot I\x92m also puzzled by this accident. All seem to agree that for some reason there was a complete electrical failure and RAT deployment. With a complete electrical failure all six main fuel pumps fail. Each engine also has two mechanically driven fuel pumps. On takeoff, if there is fuel in the center tank, it will be used first, pumped by the two center tank pumps.
My airline\x92s manuals don\x92t go into much detail, but I read on another site that if both the center tank pumps fail, the engine driven pumps aren\x92t able to suction feed well enough from the center tanks to sustain engine operation. If there was fuel in the center tanks, a complete electrical failure would soon lead to center tank fuel pumps failure (all fuel pumps failure as stated previously) and fuel starvation of both engines. A rescue from this situation would be an immediate selection of both center tank fuel pumps OFF (not if my airline\x92s non-normal checklists) and waiting for successful suction feed from the L and R main tanks to occur, this would take a number of seconds.
Crossky, welcome to this hamster wheel.

If you go and chat to the engineers, have a look in the IPC or MM I Ch 28, you should find a good description of the fuel boost pumps. It's been a while but I recall they are Eaton designs, the general arrangement is similar to the B777. They both have a suction feed that permits fuel feed in the event of a loss of all boost pumps. The only impact of that arises at high altitude and high thrust levels, where the engine driven fuel boost pumps may capitate and reduce the available fuel feed resulting in a lower thrust level.

Refer page 12.20.02 in the TBC's B787 FCTM, or search for "SUCTION FEED".

At sea level, full thrust will be achieved without any boost pump on the aircraft. Recall that the CWT boost pumps are known as Override boost pumps, they are feeding from the CWT when there is fuel and they are running, as the output pressure is higher from these pumps than the 2 wing boost pumps. Whether there is fuel in the CWT or not, or the CWT pumps are energised, is immaterial to whether fuel will be supplied to the engine driven fuel pumps.

Note that with BA038, the fundamental problem was blockage of wax/ice formed in the piping that blocked the FOHE, and that will cause a problem with those engines that have such architecture, but is not associated with the availability of the boost pumps themselves. Even then, the engines did not technically fail, as they have both done simultaneously with the B788 of AI 171, BA's engines were running but not able to provide significant thrust due to the FOHE blockages.




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lpvapproach
2025-06-21T06:13:00
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Post: 11907514
Hoover from the generally respected Pilot Debrief channel put up his analysis.

He analyses the point of rotation looking at the airport layout and using the video with the shack showing the aircraft rotate behind it, in that case the aircraft rotates at a reasonably normal place. That being the case what is the "cloud of particles" that appear to the left of the aircraft ?

He discounts electrical failure affecting both engines due 787 design, and fuel contamination due both engines fed from separate tanks unlikely to affect both engines at the same time.

The possibility that one engine failure occurred at a critical point in the take off and that possibly the wrong engine fuel cutoff switch was pulled.


camera angle with shack and suggested point of rotation



whats this..

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Senior Pilot
2025-06-21T06:36:00
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Post: 11907525
Originally Posted by lpvapproach
Hoover from the generally respected Pilot Debrief channel put up his analysis.

He analyses the point of rotation looking at the airport layout and using the video with the shack showing the aircraft rotate behind it, in that case the aircraft rotates at a reasonably normal place. That being the case what is the "cloud of particles" that appear to the left of the aircraft ?

He discounts electrical failure affecting both engines due 787 design, and fuel contamination due both engines fed from separate tanks unlikely to affect both engines at the same time.

The possibility that one engine failure occurred at a critical point in the take off and that possibly the wrong engine fuel cutoff switch was pulled.

camera angle with shack and suggested point of rotation



whats this..
All of which has been discussed and for the wing vortices and the fuel feed has been explained quite comprehensively, along with the fuel cut offs: have you not read these posts only made recently?

I repeat, do NOT post repeats of discussions already had unless there is something of value which may change or enhance previous posts. This is a prime example of a post which should be vetted and dismissed before pressing Submit Reply 🙈

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