Heathrow crash answers 'within weeks'

Jul 4 2008 By Nina Rossi

Heathrow crash

The chief investigator looking into the Heathrow crash earlier this year has promised his team is closing in on the answer to the mysterious engine failure.

David King, of the Air Accident Investigation Bureau, has been heading a 150 person investigation into the crash, which saw a Boeing 777 glide to safety over Bedfont homes on January 17.

Speaking to West Area councillors at a meeting last night, he confirmed a failure in the fuel flow had caused the engine trouble but admitted the cause was still uncertain.

Mr King said: "Something in the fuel supply was restricting the flow to the engines. Whatever that thing was it was not there when we began looking for it."

The possibility of freezing within the fuel tank is being looked into although the evidence so far suggests the fuel temperature stayed well above freezing point.

But Mr King said he remained optimistic the mystery would be solved. He added: "We are slowly reducing the circle of options around the cause as we rule out different possibilities. It's impossible to say for sure but I'm hoping we'll have an answer within the next few weeks."