AO-2021-031IncidentClosed
Hydraulic system failure — Airbus A321neo, cruise
| Date | 5 May 2021 |
| Location | En route Sydney to Melbourne, NSW |
| Aircraft | VH-UWB |
| Type | Airbus A321-271NX |
| Source | Civil Aviation Safety Authority ↗ |
Summary
A Virgin Australia A321neo declared PAN-PAN and diverted to Canberra after the Yellow hydraulic system low pressure warning illuminated during cruise. The aircraft landed on the Green and Blue systems without difficulty. Post-flight inspection found a ruptured hydraulic pressure line adjacent to the right main landing gear retraction actuator.
Investigation Findings (3)
- 01The hydraulic line failure was caused by chafing against the landing gear bay structure; a protective sleeve had been omitted during the last scheduled maintenance.
- 02Virgin Australia's Quality Assurance department identified a process gap in the maintenance job card sign-off for hydraulic line protection.
- 03Virgin Australia revised its maintenance quality assurance system to require photographic evidence of hydraulic line protection installations.
Aircraft Involved
This report is based on publicly available ATSB/CASA data and may not reflect the complete investigation findings. Refer to the official ATSB website for authoritative reports.