Two aircraft declaring an engine emergency on the same day

On the 20th of February 2021 there were two aircraft declaring an emergency due to engine failure.

The first instance was:

United Airlines Flight 328, a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Denver (DEN/KDEN) to Honolulu (HNL/PHNL), experienced a contained engine failure approximately four minutes after takeoff from Denver International Airport, despite shedding large pieces of debris. The falling parts from the engine cowling created a debris field at least 1.6 km long over suburban residential areas of Broomfield, Colorado. Eyewitnesses recorded the falling debris using smartphone cameras and car dash cam. The debris penetrated the roof of a private home and caused significant damage to a parked vehicle.

The engine failure resulted in an in-flight engine fire, extensive damage to the engine nacelle, and minor damage to the fuselage. Passengers also recorded video of the engine nacelle damage and in-flight fire and posted these to social media. 

The failed engine was a Pratt & Whitney model PW4077 turbofan. The crew secured the failed engine, and the aircraft returned to Denver using the remaining working engine, landing without further incident 24 minutes after takeoff at 13:28 local time. There were no reported injuries to persons onboard or on the ground. The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board immediately began investigating.

Aircraft Information:

Airline: United Airlines

Code: UA/UAL

Aircraft: Boeing 777-222

Registration: N772UA

Serial Number: 26930

Engines: 2 x PW PW4077

First Flew: 19/11/1994

Age: 30.3 Years 

The second instance was:

Longtail Aviation flight 5504, an international cargo flight, operated by Longtail Aviation from Aachen Airport, Netherlands (MST/EHBK) to New York, United States (JFK/KJFK), experienced an engine failure shortly after departure, resulting in debris falling to the ground near the Dutch town of Meerssen. Two individuals on the ground sustained minor injuries, and there was property damage to buildings and vehicles. The Boeing 747-400(BCF) cargo plane diverted to Liege Airport (LGG/EBLG) with the failed engine shut down and landed safely.

At 16:11 local time, flight 5504, experienced a nominally contained engine failure shortly after departing Maastricht Aachen Airport in the Netherlands in a southerly direction. Nevertheless, two people were injured by debris that also fell in a residential area. An elderly woman suffered an extensive head injury that was treated at a hospital, and a child suffered burns after touching a piece of debris on the ground.

The converted freighter aircraft, originally delivered in 1991, was powered by four Pratt & Whitney PW4056-3 engines, a version of the earlier PW4000-94 engine. "A few seconds after the plane took off, air traffic control noted an engine fire and informed the pilots. They then switched off the engine concerned and sent out an emergency signal," according to Maastricht Aachen Airport. Metal parts of engine #1 believed to be turbine blades, came down in the Sint Josephstraat area of the village of Meerssen, approximately 2 km past the end of the runway.

Aircraft Information:

Airline:  Longtail Aviation

Code: 6G/LGT

Aircraft: Boeing 747-412 (BCF)

Registration: VQ-BWT

Serial Number: 24975

Engines: 4 x PW PW4056

First Flew: 25/02/1991

Age:  24 Years