FAA orders engine inspections after fatal Southwest engine failure
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration will order inspections on engines like the one involved in the explosion on a Southwest Airlines flight that killed a passenger earlier this week. The FAA said on Wednesday that the directive — expected to be issued within the next two weeks — will require an ultrasonic inspection of fan blades when they have accrued a certain number of takeoffs and landings. Any blades that fail the inspection will have to be replaced. The order comes after a Southwest Airlines flight on Tuesday made an emergency landing in Philadelphia, due to an apparent engine failure, with one passenger killed after being nearly sucked out of the plane,” National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Robert Sumwalt told reporters at a briefing Wednesday, according to The Wall Street Journal. He also noted that this widely used family of Boeing 737 engine has a solid safety record, saying it was too early to determine if the accident pointed to a broader hazard for travelers. “If we feel there is a deeper issue, we have the capability to issue urgent safety recommendations,” he said.
Source : MTV
