A Ryanair aircraft engineer lost part of his arm when he was sucked into the engine of a Boeing jet on which he was carrying out routine checks, a court was told yesterday.
Mr Keith Chaplin's lower right arm had to be amputated as a result of the accident at Dublin Airport last March 12th. Yesterday, Ryanair was fined a total of £3,750 after it pleaded guilty to a number of breaches of health and safety legislation, including failing to maintain a safe system of work.
Dublin District Court was told Mr Chaplin was one of a four-man team checking the aircraft at about 10 p.m.
Two were in the aircraft and two on the ground and the aircraft's wheels had just been secured using chocks and a fire extinguisher.
Mr Chaplin was checking a gauge on the outside and was in communication with a person in the cockpit. The engines were idle at this stage, but as Mr Chaplin proceeded towards the left wing the throttle was increased and he was sucked into the engine.
Health and Safety Authority inspector Mr Thomas O'Sullivan said there was a "fixed veil" on front of the engine but Mr Chaplin's arm went through it and was cut off.
Mr O'Sullivan said Mr Chaplin should have been harnessed before the test was carried out and, although he was in communication with the cockpit, this was ineffective because of the noise from the engine.
It is also a requirement that an engineer should not enter the area around the engine unless it is idle.
Counsel for Ryanair said the company acknowledged it was a tragic accident and had since reviewed its safety procedures, making them even more stringent than required.
Mr Chaplin had returned to work and the company had assisted him in every way possible.
Judge Sean MacBride said Ryanair had allowed its usually high standards of safety to lapse on this occasion "to an alarming degree".
"It is a disgrace that a talented engineer lost his lower right arm and it was fortunate he did not lose more," the judge said. It was an accident that could have been avoided had proper safety standards been observed.
He took into account that Ryanair had pleaded guilty and had a clean safety record until this accident.
He said, however, that the penalty he was imposing would have to reflect the seriousness of the case and act as a warning to other airline companies. He imposed fines totalling £3,750 and ordered Ryanair to pay £1,000 costs.