The Nation : FAA Urges Modification of Older 737s

The Federal Aviation Administration urged that older U.S.-owned Boeing 737 jets be modified to prevent cracks in the fuselage that could cause them to split apart. The recommendation, contained in a directive requiring intensified inspections of older 737s, comes less than a month after an Aloha Airlines 737 jet lost nearly a third of its fuselage over the Pacific. The order would cover about 100 jets that are owned by U.S. airlines, the FAA said. It said airlines may perform complicated and time-consuming inspections of the fuselage or add rivets to sections of the plane’s body that are held together by an adhesive. The inspections would not be required if the modifications were made. The order resulted from the “numerous cracks found” in inspections of older 737s ordered immediately after the Aloha accident, the FAA said.