The Nation - News from Oct. 20, 1988

The Federal Aviation Administration said it was speeding up an order for more thorough inspections of aging Boeing 737 jetliners after a row of cracks, including one a foot long, was found on a Continental Airlines plane. But FAA and industry officials said the cracks, discovered by Continental workers on Oct. 5 while the plane was being repainted, may have been caused by the improper patching of the plane more than two years ago and not by stress from aging. The older Boeing 737s have been the focus of attention since last April, when a 20-foot section of the roof of an Aloha Airlines plane tore away at 24,000 feet.