US Army Chinooks grounded

According to several US news stations, the US Army has grounded its entire fleet of Chinook helicopters with immediate effect.

The measure has been taken after a small number of engines fires occurred in examples of the heavy lift helicopter. The US Army has identified the cause of the engine fires as a fuel leak in one of the Honeywell T-55 engines of some of their Boeing H-47 Chinook helicopters.

These fuel leaks seem to be caused by the use of aberrant O-rings in the fuel lines during routine maintenance. The manufacturer of these O-rings, a sub-contractor of Honeywell, is working to supply the Army with replacements.

The grounding measure is only taken for the approximately 400 Chinooks in US Army service and not for all those that have been delivered to foreign countries.

Photo (just illustrative): Gert Jan Mentink