The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered the inspection of more jet engines like the one that was involved in this week's fatal Southwest accident. An engine on a Southwest jet exploded over Pennsylvania on Tuesday, and debris hit the plane. The Southwest Airlines aircraft suffered an engine failure which forced it to make an emergency landing on Tuesday. The aircraft uses the same engine as Arik Air and Air Peace, two of Nigeria’s leading airlines.
Jennifer Riordan, a 43-year-old bank executive from Albuquerque, New Mexico, was sucked partway out of the jet when a window shattered. She died later from her injuries.
The Boeing 737, bound from New York to Dallas with 149 people aboard, made an emergency landing in Philadelphia.
Investigators said the blade that broke off mid-flight and triggered the fatal accident was showing signs of metal fatigue - microscopic cracks from repeated use.
Federal airline regulators say they will order inspections on engine fan blades like the one involved in fatal failure on a Southwest Airlines plane.
The National Transportation Safety Board also blamed metal fatigue for the engine failure on a Southwest plane in Florida in 2016 that was able to land safely.
That incident led manufacturer CFM International, a joint venture of General Electric Co. and France's Safran SA, to recommend in June 2017 that airlines conduct ultrasonic inspections of fan blades on many Boeing 737s.
A spokeswoman for CFM International now says the company plans to issue a service bulletin on Friday that would expand the number of engines to be checked beyond those in previous notifications.
