Aviation regulators will order tougher inspections of hundreds of Boeing 757 planes worldwide, after a recent in-flight incident that left a hole in the fuselage of an American Airlines plane, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.
One American Airlines 757 touches down on Saint Maarten as another (N645AA) taxis to the runway. (Photo by Mario J. Craig)
According to the newspaper, the Federal Aviation Administration has drafted enhanced inspection mandates after a in-flight incident that occurred on October 26 when an American plane was cruising at 31,000 feet en route from Miami to Boston.
A Boeing spokeswoman told The Wall Street Journal that the company has already issued a bulletin urging carriers to inspect the upper forward skin on certain 757s to detect potential cracks.
The American jet, a Boeing 757-200, made an emergency landing at Miami International Airport after experiencing a rapid decompression, not long after the aircraft had departed Miami en route to Boston.
AA flight 1640 was carrying 154 passengers and 6 crew. The crew donned their oxygen masks and initiated an emergency descent as the passenger oxygen masks were deployed.
A post flight inspection revealed a hole of about 1 foot by 2 feet (33 by 66cm) just above the “A” of the American Airlines Logo.
According to the Journal, the same month cracks were found in the fuselage of a United Airlines Boeing 757. Another American 757 was undergoing repairs in Los Angeles this week due to fuselage cracks.
