Safety
Missed turbine crack led to Air NZ ATR 72 engine fire, investigators find
New Zealand's TAIC found a missed turbine crack caused a 2024 Air New Zealand ATR 72 engine fire, and the evacuation that followed took nearly three times as long as it should have.
New Zealand's Transport Accident Investigation Commission published its final report on 25 September 2026 into a 2024 in flight engine fire and evacuation aboard an Air New Zealand ATR 72. TAIC found a turbine blade crack was likely present but was not detected during a Pratt and Whitney Canada engine overhaul completed less than four flying hours before the fire.
In plain terms
A turbine blade sits inside the engine's hot section, spinning at very high speed. A crack that goes undetected during an overhaul can grow quickly once the engine returns to service, and here it progressed to an in flight fire within hours of the aircraft flying again.
The investigation also found that the passenger evacuation took nearly three minutes, almost double the industry benchmark, in part because passengers stopped to retrieve carry on baggage. Air New Zealand has introduced new evacuation training and procedure changes in response to the finding.
Sources
- FlightGlobal, "ANZ reinforces training after prolonged evacuation of engine-fire ATR 72", 25 September 2026. https://www.flightglobal.com/ops-safety/2026/09/anz-reinforces-training-after-prolonged-evacuation-of-engine-fire-atr-72/
- 1News, "Missed cracks sparked Air NZ engine fire, evacuation took too long", 25 September 2026. https://www.1news.co.nz/2026/09/25/missed-cracks-sparked-air-nz-engine-fire-evacuation-took-too-long/