Accessibility links

Breaking News
USA

Safety Checks Ordered on World's Most Popular Passenger Jet


A Boeing 737 passenger plane on the platform at Newark Liberty airport in Newark, New Jersey November 15, 2012.
A Boeing 737 passenger plane on the platform at Newark Liberty airport in Newark, New Jersey November 15, 2012.
U.S. air safety officials have ordered the inspection of more than 1,000 Boeing 737 jets to make sure the aircraft is safe to fly.

The Federal Aviation Administration issued the order Monday, saying that corrosion-prone pins installed in the tails of the world's most popular passenger jet could result in "reduced structural integrity," causing pilots to lose control of the aircraft if the pins were to fail.

The safety check order applies to 1,050 aircraft flown by U.S. carriers and could cost air carriers more than $10 million.

Foreign regulators, who often follow the lead of U.S. safety officials, are likely to order the same checks on hundreds more of the popular twin-engine airplanes.

The U.S. air safety agency ordered the checks after reports surfaced that an incorrect procedure was used to apply a surface coating to the pins to protect against corrosion.

No accidents have been reported because of the suspect parts, which help secure horizontal stabilizers on the jets and control the up-and-down movement of the aircraft.
  • 16x9 Image

    VOA News

    The Voice of America provides news and information in more than 40 languages to an estimated weekly audience of over 326 million people. Stories with the VOA News byline are the work of multiple VOA journalists and may contain information from wire service reports.

XS
SM
MD
LG