FOD Mishaps – They Pretty Much Ate Our Lunch in FY01

Compliments of U.S. Air Force “Flying Safety” Magazine

Let’s take a minute and talk about FOD.

While we addressed it in some depth last year, it’s apparent that we didn’t do a good enough job getting our word across. It’s especially true when you look at a couple of the Class A FOD events from FY01. Events that just don’t make good operational or maintenance sense. Both resulted in well over a million dollars damage, and both were totally avoidable. Was it because someone missed an inspection? Or was it because we were just in too much of a hurry to get the job done?

The first event involved an aircraft fastener. This aircraft had just come out of depot and was heading home. A much-needed asset the wing had not seen for eight months was finally returning. After making it home, the inspections began. Lo and behold, extensive damage was discovered on the No. 2 engine’s fan compressor and turbine sections. Man, what a bummer! Aircraft comes home after being gone for eight months and we already have an engine change! Not to mention a $1 million-plus bill to fix the engine damage that was caused by an aircraft fastener that was just left lying around.

Another event took place in the Hush House. It was a Friday – Friday afternoon to be exact. This jet would be the last run of the day. Get this done and we’re outta here for the weekend! Everything was going all right until “it” happened. Going from idle to max power, there was a loud bang and the aircraft started to vibrate. That’s when the ground observer realized the end of his ground cord had detached from the aircraft and was in the engine inlet. Inspection revealed the engine had ingested the metal cannon plug connector and about six feet of cord, causing severe damage to the fan and compressor sections. Another $1 million bill for not paying attention to detail.

If you need more proof that FOD prevention needs your attention and involvement take a look at The graph. It shows that engine FOD mishaps in the Class B range – repair costs totaling more than $200,000 but less than $1 million – have been steadily increasing. While there were five engine FOD mishaps in the Class B Mishap category in FY96, there were 38 in FY01 – an increase of more than 700 percent!

Let’s work and strive this coming year to improve our practices and drive the FOD rates back down. Pay attention to details, don’t rush and remember to stay vigilant for the unexpected.