Extended-range twin-engine operations (ETOPS) rules are under review by the US Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA is reacting to the 24 August fuel exhaustion incident involving an Air Transat Airbus A330 with 291 passengers and 13 crew aboard. The aircraft glided safely to Lajes air base in the Azores.
The failure of ETOPS measures to prevent the fuel starvation incident is worrying proponents of the ETOPS philosophy, both manufacturers and operators, who think the incident may destroy its credibility. At a time when the Aviation Regulatory Advisory Committee is looking at extending ETOPS limits from 207 minutes to 240 minutes, a setback like this could prevent any increase.
Describing itself as "very concerned", the FAA says it is waiting for the Portuguese investigation of the Azores incident to report, and that it will "take appropriate action as necessary".
Source: Flight International
