Upkeep Hearth Leads To First Airbus A220 Hull Loss

The Airbus A220 has suffered its first recognized complete loss, and the circumstances make it particularly uncommon. Somewhat than a crash or an in-service accident, the airBaltic plane, registration YL-AAO, was misplaced after a floor hearth, which was later deemed past financial restore. Air Knowledge Information studies the fireplace occurred on June 14, 2025, throughout an auxiliary energy unit floor run following heavy upkeep, and that Airbus concluded in December 2025 that repairing the plane was not economically viable.

That turned what first seemed to be an remoted upkeep occasion into the primary recognized write-off of the A220 household. It additionally carried a measurable monetary hit for airBaltic: the airline stated the incident had a web adverse influence of €6.2 million, reflecting the write-down of the plane, associated prices and lease bills, and after the offset of a $33.4 million insurance coverage settlement.

What Occurred To YL-AAO

YL-AAO was one of many earlier A220s delivered to airBaltic, arriving from Airbus’s Montreal facility in March 2019 earlier than getting into service later that month carrying the identify Jelgava. The plane underwent heavy upkeep at Riga Worldwide Airport final summer season after an in depth interval in storage, doubtless related to its problematic Pratt & Whitney PW1521G-3 engines which have compelled airBaltic to floor quite a few plane, droop routes and lower frequencies.

On the conclusion of the upkeep, an auxiliary energy unit (APU) floor run was performed as a part of the upkeep launch course of. A hearth subsequently broke out, inflicting in depth warmth injury to the fuselage and wing root space. The supply of the fireplace was recognized because the ozone filter, a part of the environmental management system that converts ozone in bleed air earlier than it enters the cabin.

The plane remained in Riga for inspection by insurers and Airbus specialists, earlier than Airbus Engineering subsequiently concluded that restoring it was not economically viable. airBaltic was fast to level out that the incident wasn’t brought about on account of lapses in its personal processes, saying in a press release:

“Following an evaluation, Airbus representatives have concluded that restoring the plane wouldn’t be economically viable. Their investigation additionally decided that the upkeep work had been carried out in accordance with all relevant procedures in power on the time.”

Uncommon Floor Losses

Hull losses and on the bottom are uncommon, however they don’t seem to be unprecedented. Among the best-known examples got here in November 2007, when a brand-new Airbus A340-600 constructed for Etihad Airways was significantly broken throughout engine floor testing in Toulouse after it jumped its chocks and struck a blast wall. Investigators discovered the take a look at had not been carried out consistent with Airbus tips, together with the truth that the plane had been powered up whereas unchocked. The plane, which was not even two months outdated, was finally written off.

One other clear instance got here earlier that very same 12 months when a Qatar Airways Airbus A300-600 was utterly destroyed in a hangar hearth whereas present process upkeep in Abu Dhabi. The reason for the fireplace was doubtless a spark or electrostatic discharge from paint-spraying tools whereas the plane was present process inside work, and exacerbated by flammable vapor that had constructed up beneath polythene sheeting throughout the portray course of.

A unique sort of floor casualty got here in 2013, when an Ethiopian Airways Boeing 787-8 caught hearth whereas parked and unoccupied at London Heathrow Airport. The UK AAIB later concluded that the fireplace originated from the emergency locator transmitter’s lithium-metal battery, and the plane suffered in depth warmth injury within the rear fuselage space. In contrast to the opposite circumstances, the plane was capable of be repaired, returning to the skies later that 12 months, and it continues to fly to at the present time.

Not The First A220 To Be Damaged Up

Whereas YL-AAO is the primary A220 hull loss as the results of an incident, it isn’t the primary A220 to be faraway from circulation. Final 12 months a former Egyptair A220 was scrapped for components in Canada, changing into the primary recognized A220 part-out. The airline took supply of its first A220 in 2019 and finally operated a fleet of 12, however the kind proved troublesome in service. Persistent Pratt & Whitney engine points left plane spending an excessive amount of time within the store, forcing the airline to fall again on older jets and undermining the economics the fleet had been purchased for within the first place.

By early 2024, EgyptAir had bought all 12 A220s to lessor Azorra, which partnered with Delta Materials Companies (a subsidiary of the US airline) on the primary teardown. The plane was used as a supply of engines and high-value components at a time of acute shortages, serving to to help Delta Air Traces‘ personal A220 fleet, and underscoring how useful usable parts had turn into and why there are a number of situations of almost-new plane being scrapped for components.

That’s the vital distinction within the airBaltic story. EgyptAir’s former A220s have been damaged up as a result of the economics of components and engine demand made teardown engaging. YL-AAO, in contrast, is the primary A220 really written off due to an incident. The airBaltic plane is subsequently two tales without delay: the A220’s first write-off after almost a decade of service, and a reminder that a few of aviation’s most consequential losses by no means occur within the air in any respect.