Airbus Industrie A330 incident near Brussels, Be, August 9, 2003
On August 9, 2003, a Airbus Industrie A330 was involved in an incident near Brussels. It was flown under non-U.S. commercial rules. The NTSB record does not give the injuries.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this incident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 9, 2003
- Place
- Brussels, Belgium
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- The NTSB record does not give the injuries.
- Weather
- not recorded
- Aircraft
- Airbus Industrie A330 · all A330s on the register
- Registration
- not recorded
- Damage
- Not recorded
- Flight
- Flight · non-U.S. commercial rules
The NTSB's narrative preliminary · quoted from the NTSB record
On August 9, 2003, a Sabena Brussels Airlines Airbus Industrie A330, registered in Belgium as OO-SFO, had to return to Brussels, Belgium after the pilots felt a vibration in the left engine, a General Electric CF6-80E1turbofan. The airplane was enroute from Brussels at is cruising altitude of 35,000 feet when the pilots reported feeling a short duration, heavy vibration. The pilots reduced the power to idle and returned to Brussels for an uneventful landing. The investigation of this incident is under the jurisdiction of the Belgium Ministry of Communications and Infrastructure. This report is for information purposes only and contains information that was release by or obtained from the Government of Belgium. Further information pertaining to this incident may be obtained from: Ministry of Communications and Infrastructure Air Accidents and Investigations Center Communication North - 4th floor Rue du Progres, P.O. Box 5 B-1039 Brussels, Belgium Fax: (32) 2 277 4260
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
The aircraft
- Landing gear: fixed
- Operator: Sabena Brussels Airlines
The flight
- Departed from: Brussels
- Flight plan: IFR
Weather at the time
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.