FAA Orders Urgent Inspections on Some Boeing 737s for Cracks

FAA Orders Urgent Inspections on Some Boeing 737s For Wing-Related Cracks (excerpt)

The Federal Aviation Administration is ordering airlines to inspect key structural components on more than 1,900 Boeing airplanes to look for cracks that could endanger the aircraft.

Southwest, United, and American are among the U.S. airlines that fly the Next-Generation 737 jets covered under the urgent order, which will be formally issued Thursday. More than 165 U.S.-registered planes will have to be inspected within seven days, the FAA said Wednesday.

“Boeing notified the agency of the matter after it discovered structural cracks on an aircraft undergoing modifications in China,” the FAA said in a statement. “Subsequent inspections yielded similar cracks in a small number of additional planes.”

The cracks were discovered in a joint and “fail-safe” parts related to support beams in the jets’ wings, according to the FAA and Boeing.

The problem “could adversely affect the structural integrity of the airplane and result in loss of control of the airplane,” according to a draft of the FAA order published Wednesday on the website of the Federal Register.

Boeing said no airlines have reported safety incidents related to the cracks. (end of excerpt)

Click here for the full story, on the Washington Post website.

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