During the approach to land the tower controller advised the
crew of the BAe146 that the aircraft appeared to be trailing smoke.
The crew responded that there was no cockpit indication of fire,
but asked the controller "to keep an eye on it". The rescue fire
fighting service was then alerted and placed on local standby.
During the landing roll a fire service officer advised that
there was smoke in the area of the auxillary power unit (APU)
jetpipe but that no flame was evident. The aircraft was taxiied in
normally, after which the passengers were disembarked through the
forward entry door. During the disembarkation, flames were observed
from the APU jet pipe and were quickly extinquished.
The crew advised that the APU had "overtemped and hung" during
the startup sequence. It was soon after this time that the Tower
controller reported smoke behind the aircraft. The APU was shut
down and the integrity of the APU fire warning system confirmed.
There was no indication of smoke in the cockpit or cabin.
Initial examination revealed a significant internal failure of
the APU turbine. The subsequent fire was contained within the core
of the APU and there was no external damage to the engine or to the
airconditioning bay. The APU was removed from service for detailed
bulk strip examination.