Engines have now become at least part of the focus of another unusual crash, this one an MK Airlines Boeing 747-200 cargo plane in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Canadian authorities are trying to figure out why the jumbo jet used practically every inch of runway (scraping the tail twice) and then scraped its tail along the ground for about 200 yards before becoming briefly airborne. It didn’t gain enough altitude to clear an antenna on a communications berm about 350 yards from the end of the runway. That’s where the tail broke off and the rest of the fully-fueled plane careened into a gravel pit. All seven aboard were killed. On Saturday, Canadian Transportation Safety Board officials confirmed that within weeks of the accident two engines on the aircraft had been replaced. TSB spokesman Bill Fowler said the board is now looking into whether “there’s any indication of a systemic issue with this aircraft or these engines.” The plane was on its way to Spain with a load of lawn tractors and fish. Heavy rain has hampered the recovery effort.
