FAA orders 737 inspections to prevent fuselage holes

[marmar]

WASHINGTON -- The Federal Aviation Administration is ordering $5 million in new inspections for Boeing 737s in response to a hole larger than a football that was torn in the roof of an aging Southwest Airlines plane during a flight in July 2009.

The order, which will be published Wednesday in the Federal Register, calls for repetitive inspections for cracking in the top of the fuselage of 109 planes in the 300, 400 and 500 series. Most of these models are flown by Southwest in the U.S.

The more-thorough inspections for those planes are projected to cost up to a total of $5.2 million, and additional repairs could cost $17,765 per plane, according to the FAA.

In a statement Monday, the FAA says the agency "always evaluates the effectiveness of our safety improvements." The latest directive is "to reduce risk further and assure continued safe operation," the agency says. ..............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.freep.com/usatoday/article/1800809?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|FRONTPAGE|s

[longship]

1. I hope they aren't like this hole.

Aloha Airlines flight 943, 1988. Amazingly, landed with few casualties. Lucky the thing didn't break up at altitude.

Just for perspective.

[marmar]

2. I sort of remember that. Didn't some people get sucked out of the plane in the air?

nt

[longship]

3. A stewardess.

Horrible. But those pilots kept their cool and landed it.

[uppityperson]

4. Flight attendant did.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aloha_Airlines_Flight_243
The only fatality was flight attendant Clarabelle "C.B." Lansing, who was blown out of the airplane. Another 65 passengers and crew were injured.

[Agschmid]

5. This is always such a terrifying image.

I used to watched the show MayDay Air Disasters and this was on of the episodes. It was a great show but it made it a bit scary to fly sometimes.