Airbus has redesigned an entire control panel for its Airbus A350 aircraft recently following reports of engine failures caused after the pilots spilled beverages, especially coffee.
Two Airbus A350-900s experienced single-engine shutdowns because of spilled coffee on the control panel in the last eight months. The engines start switch and some electronic aircraft monitoring systems are located in the control panel.
Following these two incidents, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) released an airworthiness directive that banned liquids in the cockpit near the center console.
The first incident occurred on a flight operated by Asiana Airlines from Seoul to Singapore. However, in this flight, the tea was spilled upon the control panel.
Similarly, another incident occurred on a Delta Airlines flight between Seoul and Detroit back in January this year. One of the engines shut down shortly after coffee was spilled onto the instrument cluster.
If EASA gives its approval, the new spill-proof panels will be installed in A350-900s and -1000s within the next eight months.
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