QCAA revokes ‘Airworthiness Review Certificate’ of another A350; 22 aircraft now grounded

Regulator Qatar Civil Aviation Authority (QCAA) has revoked the ‘Airworthiness Review Certificate’ in respect of an additional A350 aircraft, resulting in a total of 22 Airbus A350 aircraft now being grounded.“This decision has been taken by our regulator as all of these aircraft have developed damage as a result of the A350 Accelerated Surface Degradation Condition, which is beyond the tolerance limits set by Airbus,” Qatar Airways said on Monday.The QCAA will not allow these aircraft to return to service until a full and conclusive root cause analysis has been completed, the impact on continuing airworthiness has been established and a solution been found to permanently correct the root cause and repair the damage. “The safety of passengers and crew remains the highest priority for Qatar Airways and therefore the airline fully supports the decision of the QCAA,” the national airline said. Based on regulatory instruction, Qatar Airways had earlier grounded several Airbus A350s over what it described as fuselages “degrading at an accelerated rate” in the long-range aircraft.The national carrier earlier said it had been monitoring the degradation beneath the paint on the fuselage of the aircraft for some time. It described the issue as a “significant condition”.With 22 A350s now being grounded, the regulatory instruction means effectively removing them from service until such time as the root cause can be established and a satisfactory solution made available to permanently correct the underlying condition.Qatar Airways has a fleet of 53 Airbus A350s in both its 1000 and 900 series. According to Al Jazeera English, the airline has another on order with the Toulouse, France-based aeroplane manufacturer, making its total order of 76 aircraft — the most of any airline worldwide. In June, Qatar Airways said it wouldn’t take any more A350s unless the problem was fixed.