Heating fault forced Jetstar landing

A cockpit fire that forced a Jetstar plane to make an emergency landing in Guam was sparked by a windshield heating system fault.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau has completed its investigation into the Jetstar A330 jet flight that left Japan on June 10, 2009 bound for the Gold Coast with 186 adult passengers, four infants and 13 crew aboard.

The ATSB said the crew’s “prompt and focused” extinguishing of the small fire and diversion to Guam was “appropriate” for the circumstances.

The ATSB report released today says the localised cockpit fire resulted from an electrical fault with the right windshield heating system.

Contributing factors were windshields manufactured with terminal block fittings containing polysulfide sealant (PR1829) that have been shown to be “predisposed to premature overheating failure that could lead to the development of a localised fire”.