Etihad Boeing 777-300 from Abu Dhabi to Sydney diverted due to wrong wiring

The cause of a fire in an Etihad Airways’ jet that forced the passenger flight to divert to Adelaide has been revealed.

An Etihad Airways Boeing 777 en route from Abu Dhabi to Sydney was involved in an incident in October 2017.

Incorrectly installed wiring has been blamed for a fire in the cargo compartment of an Etihad Airways’ jet that forced the passenger flight to divert to Adelaide.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has today released its final report on the October 14, 2017 incident involving a Boeing 777-300 en route from Abu Dhabi to Sydney.

The report said the flight crew noticed a burning smell coming from an air vent, which was followed by a message warning of a fire in the forward cargo.

In response, the pilots actioned the “non-normal checklist” closing the air vents in the forward cargo compartment, and discharging two fire extinguishers in the section.

A “mayday” message was sent to Air Traffic Control as the aircraft diverted to Adelaide as the nearest suitable airport for the 777-300.

After landing uneventfully, emergency services inspected the aircraft externally but could not find any fire or hot spots, and passengers were disembarked without incident.

A further inspection after the cargo compartment was emptied, found soot and heat damage between the cabin floor and upper cargo ceiling panel.

Further investigations revealed a wiring bundle had been incorrected routed, and as a result the wires came into contract with screws and nutplates.

Over time, the bundle chafed through the insulation coating, allowing the wire to short circuit.

Boeing reported it was the fifth such incident involving wire chafing and arcing in the cargo area of a 777, but it was the first event to trigger the cargo fire warning system in flight.

The report revealed that due to the occurrence, Boeing took a number of steps to identify similar issues and ensure the risk of wires coming into contact with screws was further minimised.

“Despite complex systems of design and manufacturing, training and quality control, errors to occur during manufacturing that may not be apparent for some time,” the ATSB report said.

“In this case, the aircraft was manufactured four years prior to the incident.”

The report acknowledged that crew actions together with regulatory design requirements, material composition and system protections minimised the severity of damage from the short circuit.

“In response to this and four other incidents, the aircraft manufacturer utilised their system of communication to alert all operators of the issue and took actions in an effort to prevent reoccurrence,” said the report.