Boeing in trouble: hundreds of planes to be sent for inspection due to discovery of cracks
The US Federal Aviation Administration has ordered an inspection of 471 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft after cracks were discovered in them. The planes will not be grounded, but any crack found will require repair before returning to service.
According to a report by CNN, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has ordered inspections of hundreds of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft to detect cracks in the fuselage, warning that undetected damage could affect the structural strength of the aircraft.
The new airworthiness directive applies to approximately 471 Boeing 737 MAX 8, MAX 9, and MAX 8-200 aircraft registered in the United States. According to the FAA, cracks were discovered in some of the aircraft in an area of structural reinforcement around the forward service door on the right side of the aircraft, near the forward galley.
Airlines will be required to inspect the area according to a schedule determined by the usage intensity of each aircraft and to repair any crack found before the aircraft is returned to service. Boeing stated that it has conducted an engineering analysis to determine the cause of the cracks and that it is working on engineering changes that will prevent the problem in the future.
The FAA did not order the grounding of the aircraft, explaining that the established inspection intervals provide several opportunities to detect the cracks before they can affect the structural integrity of the aircraft. The directive will take effect on September 10.
This is not the first time Boeing has had to deal with structural cracks in 737 aircraft. In 2019, inspections were ordered for some Boeing 737-700, 737-800, and 737-900 aircraft after cracks were discovered in a component connecting the fuselage to the wings.
"This issue was not observed in the 737 MAX fleet, but Boeing expanded the inspections to the 737 MAX aircraft as well, since the model shares a similar design and manufacturing process," the company stated. "We support both directives and continue to support our airline customers."
Last month, the FAA proposed another airworthiness directive that will require inspection of seat assemblies on 453 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft due to concerns that they were installed incorrectly.
The manufacturer has been under increased scrutiny since a door plug on an Alaska Airlines plane blew out during a flight in January 2024. The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that four bolts that were supposed to hold the plug in place were missing when the aircraft was delivered to the airline in October 2023.
