HONG KONG - Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways said on Sept 2 it had started a fleet-wide inspection of its Airbus A350 aircraft after identifying an engine component failure, sending shares in British engine maker Rolls-Royce down sharply.

The carrier said it had cancelled 24 return flights operating until the end of Sept 3, and that a number of aircraft would be out of service for several days while the process, which it described as precautionary, was completed.

An Airbus spokesperson referred questions to the airline and to engine maker Rolls-Royce, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Shares in the British company – the sole engine provider for the long-haul A350 jetliner – fell as much as 8.8 per cent after Cathay reported the engine component failure.

The failure was identified in an aircraft that was forced to return to Hong Kong during a flight to Zurich earlier on Sept 2. Cathay did not describe the component in detail but said it was the first of its type to suffer such failure on any A350 aircraft worldwide.

“Thus far we have identified a number of the same engine components that need to be replaced. Spare parts have been secured and repair work is underway,” it said.

According to Flightradar24 data, the diverted aircraft is an A350-1000, the larger of two models of twin-engined A350. These are powered by the XWB-97, Rolls’ largest jet engine.

The aircraft involved was delivered in January 2019, according to the same data.

It was not immediately clear when the affected Rolls-Royce XWB-97 engine was first placed on the aircraft. Experts say airlines and engine makers occasionally swap engines around to fit maintenance schedules.

The airline said it was coordinating with the Hong Kong Civil Aviation Department and the jet and engine manufacturers.

Cathay operates a mixed fleet of Boeing and Airbus aircraft and has around 100 planes currently on order including freighters, narrow-bodies and wide-bodies, with rights to acquire another 80. REUTERS