tonyot Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 I don`t know the in`s and out`s but it appears to be a fault with the Merlin engine,...... so whether the Griffon Spit`s are serviceable and currently airworthy I`m not sure,..... here is a link; http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-england-lincolnshire-40902497?ns_mchannel=social&ns_source=twitter&ns_campaign=bbc_live&ns_linkname=59946003e4b094949457daa9%26All+Battle+of+Britain+Memorial+Flight+aircraft+grounded+after+inspection%26&ns_fee=0#post_59946003e4b094949457daa9 I dare say that we shall find out more soon, Cheers Tony 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyTiger66 Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 Thanks for the link Tony It's odd that the article says; "affects all current and serviceable display aircraft". As you point out, not all the aircraft have the Merlin I hope they can overcome the problem and get the aircraft back to safe, airworthy condition without excessive expense or difficulty. The BBMF is a national treasure. Best regards TonyT 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CedB Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 Nothing on BBMF's webpage or social media. Fingers crossed it's nothing serious... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyot Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 I saw a mention of this on the BBMF Facebook page,.... it was in reply to a query as to why an aircraft had not displayed recently,..... it was a rather low key comment saying that they had found a fault and were waiting for industry to comment,...... so wonder what it is? Is this a BBMF only grounding or are other Merlin engined aircraft in the UK grounded too? Cheers Tony Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tbolt Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 29 minutes ago, TonyTiger66 said: Thanks for the link Tony It's odd that the article says; "affects all current and serviceable display aircraft". As you point out, not all the aircraft have the Merlin I hope they can overcome the problem and get the aircraft back to safe, airworthy condition without excessive expense or difficulty. The BBMF is a national treasure. Best regards TonyT Just bad reporting - they have said that their Griffon Spit will still fly. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Troy Smith Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 darn, and they are supposed to be at Eastboune this weekend! Does sound weird, not like the Merlin is new technology, so wonder what the problem is? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cngaero Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 Just a thought. I wonder if it has anything to do with outsourced maintenance and the sourcing of parts by the contractors at "competitive" prices. I've worked with companies who outsourced their maintenance to save money, but the subsequent requests for any repairs had to have three quotes and I was always pressured to select the cheapest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamie @ Sovereign Hobbies Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 9 hours ago, Troy Smith said: darn, and they are supposed to be at Eastboune this weekend! Does sound weird, not like the Merlin is new technology, so wonder what the problem is? It's probably an incorrect assembly of some item that's been overhauled by the samr people on all of their Merlins, or some seal or gasket or similar they've used on all of their Merlin systems that they've found to have failed prematurely. I highly doubt there's anything suddenly breaking on the engine core itself, but more something relatively small they've found that's nevertheless incorrect and which would be unsafe/irresponsible to fly which happens very frequently in aviation. The slightly more unusual part here is that someone has pointed out that whatever issue they've discovered is applicable to all of their Merlins. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenko Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 Could be something like..... If we were running a fleet of cars with the same engine and we found that the cylinder head gaskets were not up to the standard we would expect and they could blow, we would stop using them until the problem was fixed. Cheers Dick 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Headroom Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 It's on Breakfast on BBC1. Apparently BBMF operate a Spitfire 18 and a Blenheim I. Every day is a school day....... Trevor 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tomprobert Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 Is this issue just affecting the BBMF? The Spits from Biggin Hill were up and about as usual yesterday so it appears their Merlins are ok. I'm going to the Biggin Hill air show this weekend and will be gutted if the Lancaster etc. can't make it, but I suppose safety must come first. If all Merlin engined aircraft are affected it might be a quiet air show! As a side note, there's just been a short bit on the BBC morning news showing clips of a... Griffon Spitfire, Blenheim and Duxford's Spit Mk1s. *facepalm* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul J Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 Re the latest BBc reports on Tv, clearly they used some stock footage that don't all include to BBMF aircraft. BBc producer: "Somebody, lets find some airworhty Spitfire film for the viewers..." On the radio I heard a better report where thye quoted the Spits, Hurricanes and LAnc and said 3 of them are the Griffon Spits but also said they were unserviceable or words to that effect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vtecjack Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 I hope it is only the BBMF aircraft that the technical issues ,not all Merlin powered aircraft ,otherwise ,Duxford will be very quiet in a few weeks time ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bentwaters81tfw Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 11 hours ago, cngaero said: Just a thought. I wonder if it has anything to do with outsourced maintenance and the sourcing of parts by the contractors at "competitive" prices. I've worked with companies who outsourced their maintenance to save money, but the subsequent requests for any repairs had to have three quotes and I was always pressured to select the cheapest. Considering BBMF outsource to ARCo, I very much doubt that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cngaero Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 1 hour ago, bentwaters81tfw said: Considering BBMF outsource to ARCo, I very much doubt that. Don't get me wrong on this. In no way am I suggesting that there is anything untoward with this, but all contractors and subcontractors are under tremendous pressure to come in on budget. It's not beyond the realms of possibility that somewhere along the supply chain that an option to obtain/manufacture a certain part made with material A at X cost, or material B at Y cost may have been considered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhoenixII Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 34 minutes ago, melvyn hiscock said: One XIX is in deep maintenance, the other is on a 50 hour check as I understand. The problem is being investigated to see if it is likely to be occurring across all Merlins Here ya go guys, posted in "Real Aviation" 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonhoff Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 Wrong oil? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72modeler Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 I heard from a former UK aerospace friend/enthusiast friend to whom I sent this topic; his reply stated that there was an issue with one of the Merlin engines that was in maintenance/overhaul/ inspection by the firm that the BBMF outsources their engines to, and they wanted to make sure that the problem was isolated to the one powerplant and not the others in the fleet. Does not affect any of the Griffon-powered Spits, according to him. Mike 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biggles87 Posted August 18, 2017 Share Posted August 18, 2017 (edited) Not wishing to be selfish, but I hope it is only the BBMF aircraft. There is a display near here on Sunday which is advertised to include a Spitfire and they're a bit thin on the ground in these parts, so I was eager to see ( and hear ) one again. John Edited August 18, 2017 by Biggles87 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenko Posted August 30, 2017 Share Posted August 30, 2017 Update http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lincolnshire-41095753 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
72modeler Posted August 30, 2017 Share Posted August 30, 2017 Thanks for the post! Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guitarpete247 Posted September 1, 2017 Share Posted September 1, 2017 This is from the RAF BBMF website. 29 August 2017 News articles by date Following the recent pause in flying our Merlin-powered aircraft for safety reasons, OC BBMF said: “Please see below the MOD’s latest release on the subject of BBMF Merlin engines. As I hope you all know, my aim is to keep these vital and unique artefacts of Britain’s proud history in the sky forever. To do that we sometimes have to take extra precautions, with our eye sharply on continuing safety, to ensure that we can keep them flying for future generations. I thank each and every one of you who has voiced their support and shown their understanding. We will get them back into the blue as soon we can. Lest We Forget." The update from the MOD: "Our investigation has confirmed an issue with a pinion gear in a Merlin engine. With the precise cause of the problem known, each pinion gear is now being inspected to confirm it meets our exacting standards, with the BBMF and industry putting all of our efforts into getting these beautiful aircraft safely back in the air as soon as possible." 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Posted September 1, 2017 Share Posted September 1, 2017 Glad to hear they now know the issue and can fix it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now