An Antonov An-124 aircraft has transported a GE90 engine for a Swiss Airlines-operated Boeing 777-300ER plane, which was stranded in Iqaluit, Canada.

Air Charter Service (ACS) has arranged the transportation of the engine, which was fitted into the Boeing aircraft that suffered a mechanical problem during its flight from Zurich, Switzerland, to Los Angeles, US.

The engine problem was detected when the aircraft was flying over Canada’s far northern regions, forcing the plane to make an emergency landing in Iqaluit.

Despite running on one engine, the aircraft was able to make a smooth landing, causing no harm to the 216 passengers and 17 crew members on board.

ACS director James Cristofoli said: “After an initial investigation by the airline, it was determined that their engine could not be fixed where it was. We were then contacted to urgently find a charter solution to transport a new GE90 engine for the B777 and fly it into Iqaluit, which is just outside the Arctic Circle.

“After an initial investigation by the airline, it was determined that their engine could not be fixed where it was."

“We were also asked to take engineers and a 25t forklift tractor and support equipment to offload the cargo, as Iqaluit didn’t have sufficient means.

“Also on board was a precision fit, inflatable over-wing shelter which allowed the engineers to work on the engine away from the daytime temperature of around -30°C. We then had to plan to fly the faulty engine back to the GE factory in Wales.”

ACS also noted that the GE90 engine transported to fit into the stranded Boeing 777 aircraft has a diameter of 4m.


Image: An Antonov An-124 aircraft delivering a GE90 engine for a Boeing 777-300ER plane. Photo: courtesy of Air Charter Service.