jaymar01

- A Delta flight from Atlanta to Baltimore made an emergency landing in Raleigh on Monday after an engine appeared to fail mid-flight.

- Video on Twitter shows flames within the engine, while users who say they were on the flight describe a smoke-filled cabin, and professional crew members who helped keep everyone calm.

- There were 148 passengers aboard the MD-88 aircraft.

https://www.businessinsider.com/delt...failure-2019-7

Mwenenzi

Now "flames within the engine" is a good thing, Burning fuel & operating.
But "no flames within the engine" is not good: it is not operating.

Avherald link---> Incident: Delta MD88 near Raleigh/Durham on Jul 8th 2019, engine problem

spongenotbob

FlyingUnderTheRadar

It appears to me that the inlet cone came off. This piece that has a spiral on it for safety so that one can tell the engine is running. As for the glow that is seen with the cone off I "believe" that is normal.

Lomapaseo

Nope

the nose cone is not attached to the rotor and does not spin.
The glow is from the exposed front bearing which now is in a bad state due to a significant imbalance in the fan rotor

the engine is no longer running but is freewheeling (with a bad bearing) from the pinwheel effect of the air coming in.

The engine will continue to freewheel spin like a car running on a flat tire, until the plane stops on the runway. Not a big deal except for the noise in the cabin.

jrl767

TommyD2

Looks like someone threw a 'droid in the engine.

Dang, scary if I was watching that live.

Lomapaseo

They would need strobed eyeballs to see it at takeoff RPMs

golfr

I don't know about you all brave souls. If I saw that out my window, I'm gonna crap my pants and possibly faint.

steve64

Some airlines paint a spiral on their large "high-bypass" turbo fan engine cones. It is to warn birds and other critters (ramp personnel) that the engine is starting. Older jet engines are typically started by blowing air onto the turbine blades, so there isn't a whole lot of "noise warning" until it's too late. The intake "suction" on these high-bypass engines is not to be taken lightly. However, even at idle speeds, it's hard to note any "spinning motion".
And on these engines, the first set of blades are actually the first stage fan. They, and the cone, spin.

The MD-80 engine is a variant of the model that powered the original DC-9 and 727. They are turbo fans, but are not considered high-bypass. Their suction isn't as powerful. Being fuselage mounted, they're relatively higher off the ground, etc.
And on these engines, the first set of blades are called "stators". Neither they nor their attached cone will spin. It's hard to see because they're farther back in the engine nacelle, whereas a high-bypass fan is towards the front for all to see.
Looking at the video, the loose cone is bouncing against the stator "blades". If those were fan blades, the cone would've been shredded.

TL;DR Different engine types. The "cone" spins on some, but not all.

enviroian

First off I don't know about anyone else here typing from the comfort of their office but if I was on that plane seeing that piece rumble inside that engine I would be scared s-less.

Secondly as I was watching NBC news this morning still half awake the anchor was telling this story. He said "they call this plane the mad dog due to the noise it makes screaming down the runway". I laughed so hard in bed it has already made my day.

CDG1

Delta Promotes Pilots to Captain Faster If They Fly This Terrible Plane

The MD-88, nicknamed "Mad Dog," is old, noisy, cramped in the cockpit, and a young pilot's ticket to an early promotion.

The McDonnell Douglas MD-88, the final variant of the MD-80 twin-engine single-aisle jet, is the oldest plane in service with any major U.S. airline. Introduced in 1988, pilots call the jet "Mad Dog." It has "eyebrow windows" that were common when pilots navigated by the stars—but now they tend to let light glares hit pilots right in the eyes. The cockpit has been described as a "cage" with no room to stretch. The aircraft controls are antiquated and require pilots to relearn checklist procedures, and Mad Dog is so loud that U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York applauded when Delta stopped flying it out of LaGuardia Airport.

-50%
Read more here:
https://www.popularmechanics.com/fli...errible-plane/

DTWflyer

If I saw that, I'd be scared of an un-contained failure and wouldn't want to be seated anywhere near the back of that aircraft.
Not knowing what failed, I'd be afraid the engine would start shedding rotors and fan blades all over the place.

ethernal

While I agree with you in principle (I wouldn't want to sit next to it either), that is probably a relatively low risk... While the engine will continue to windmill, the amount of rotational energy in the blades is tiny compared to when it is in operation.

MSPeconomist