An ongoing investigation into why smoke filled the cabin onboard a Nordic Aviation Group CRJ900 from Tallinn to Amsterdam, which led to an aborted takeoff in June, may have been caused by the burning of washing chemicals left in the engine.
“The investigation concerning the incident with a Nordica aircraft in Tallinn on 5 June is far from complete, but according to initial information, this may have been smoke caused by the burning of chemicals left in the engine from a wash that entered the cabin and cockpit of the aircraft through the ventilation system when the plane was started,” spokespeople for Nordica told BNS.
“According to procedure, after each engine wash, the aircraft’s maintenance company must burn out chemicals at full throttle before the aircraft can once again carry passengers,” the spokespeople explained. The ongoing investigation will definitely determine all of the circumstances of the incident, however.
After the aircraft’s smoke detectors went off, the pilots halted the takeoff and evacuated the passengers from the plane. There were no reported injuries, however the aircraft sustained minor damage during the evacuation.
