Motorer igjen - Nå "fall out" etter Southwests Uncontained Engine filure - Curt Lewis

Boeing commits to NTSB safety fixes on thousands of 737 NG jets after deadly Southwest engine blast Boeing says it is reinforcing a part of the aircraft on its 737 NGs after NTSB's recommendations. The push comes after a fan blade broke off on Southwest Flight 1380 in April 2018. One passenger died on the flight, the first accident-related fatality on a U.S. passenger airline in almost a decade. Boeing on Tuesday said it plans to revamp parts for thousands of 737s after federal safety officials investigating last year's deadly engine blast on Southwest Airlines flight called for a redesign that would better withstand engine failures in flight. The National Transportation Safety Board's recommendations come after its investigation of Southwest Flight 1380, in April 2018, when a fan blade broke off one of the engines, punctured a three-pane window and sucked a passenger partly out of the plane briefly. The passenger, who was pulled back inside the aircraft by passengers, died, becoming the first accident-related fatality on a U.S. airline in almost a decade. The National Transportation Safety Board's recommendations are adding to scrutiny of the Boeing's designs amid a worldwide grounding of its Max jetliners after two deadly crashes and issues with a part on some older 737 jetliners. The NTSB's recommendations refer to the 737 NG, or next-generation plane, of which about 7,000 have been delivered to airlines worldwide, according to Teal Group data. Boeing said it commended the NTSB for its investigation and said it is "committed to working closely with the FAA, engine manufacturers, and industry stakeholders to implement enhancements that address the NTSB's safety recommendations." It said "enhancements are being introduced" to inlet and fan cowls to improve "their ability to withstand an engine fan blade out event as well as to increase the overall capability of these structures." On April 17, 2018, a Southwest Boeing 737-700, which was en route to Dallas Love Field from New York's LaGuardia Airport on April 17, 2018, with 144 passengers and five crew members on board, diverted to Philadelphia after the incident. After the accident, the Federal Aviation Administration ordered airlines to checks for cracks in CFM56 engine fan blades. Boeing said all 737 NGs are safe to keep operating because "the issue is completely mitigated by the fan blade inspections." The NTSB recommendations don't relate to Boeing's beleaguered 737 Max, a newer version of the plane that has been grounded since mid-March in the wake of two fatal crashes in a span of five months, but the recommendations are adding to scrutiny of the aerospace giant's planes. Dozens of 737 NGs have been grounded recently after inspectors found cracks in so-called pickle forks, which connect wings to fuselages. In June, the FAA called for checks on dozens of older 737 planes for potentially faulty wing parts. Southwest, which operates an all-Boeing 737 fleet, said in a statement that safety of its fleet, crews and customers "are of paramount importance." "We look forward to reviewing the NTSB's recommendations and working with the manufacturers to prevent this type of event from ever happening again," the Dallas-based airline said. The CFM-56 engines on the Southwest plane involved in the April 2018 accident are some of the most popular in the world and made by CFM International, joint venture of General Electric and France's Safran. "Our standard practice is to develop and certify engines in close collaboration with our airframe partners, working within the appropriate regulatory framework," CFM told CNBC in a statement. "We will continue to strictly comply with regulatory requirements, including any changes that might be adopted as a result of NTSB's recommendations." Boeing shares fell sharply after the NTSB's recommendations, released in Washington, D.C., during the agency's hearing on the probable cause of the deadly incident on the flight, but recovered some ground, closing down 0.7% at $367. Among its seven recommendations NTSB also said airlines retrofit their aircraft with the new coverings, known as a cowling. "The recommendations we adopted today are a reminder that it is not enough to do our best to prevent a failure," said NTSB Chairman Robert Sumwalt. "We also must actively work to identify ways to minimize the effects of a failure if one occurs." The agency said the accident occurred because of a "low-cycle" - or low-use - fatigue crack in the fan blade that was not likely detectable during the plane's last routine inspections.

U.S. safety board wants Boeing to redesign 737 NG part after fatal Southwest accident WASHINGTON, Nov 19 (Reuters) - The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board on Tuesday called on Boeing Co to redesign the fan cowl structure on 737 NG planes after a passenger was killed on a Southwest Airlines plane in April 2018 after an engine failure. The NTSB said the engine failure was caused by a broken fan blade, and the board said the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration should require Boeing to determine the fan blade impact location or locations on the engine fan case and redesign the structure to minimize the potential of a catastrophic failure. The board did not fault Boeing's analysis in the mid-1990s when it developed the plane. The NTSB had been investigating a 2016 engine failure on another Southwest 737-700 at the time of the fatal incident. The incidents in both flights were what is known as a "fan blade out" (FBO) event. The 737-700 is a model in the 737 NG family. Boeing said all 737 NGs are safe to continue operating as the issue is "completely mitigated by the fan blade inspections." Boeing is working on a design enhancement "that would fully address the safety recommendation from the NTSB. Once approved by the FAA, that design change will be implemented in the existing NG fleet." The FAA noted that it had issued numerous directives requiring more fan blade inspections and said it would "carefully review and respond to the NTSB recommendations." The NTSB said Boeing's postaccident analyses found that the fan cowl structure is "more sensitive and more susceptible to failure" when a fan blade hit the fan case than previously indicated. NTSB Chairman Robert Sumwalt acknowledged the retrofit could be expensive. "This accident underlines the vulnerability of the fan case to become separated when the fan blade detaches at a location that was not anticipated," Sumwalt said after the hearing. The NTSB did not call for the planes to be grounded and noted that airlines are now inspecting the fan blades on a more regular basis, essentially every nine to 12 months. Southwest spokesman Chris Mainz said the airline would review the NTSB's recommendations and work "with the manufacturers to prevent this type of event from ever happening again." Jennifer Riordan of New Mexico, a 43-year-old Wells Fargo vice president and mother of two, was killed after the engine exploded and shattered a plane window on Flight 1380. She was the first person killed in a U.S. passenger airline accident since 2009. The accident occurred 20 minutes into the flight when a fan blade fractured as a result of a fatigue crack on a Boeing 737-700 jet powered by two CFM International CFM56-7B engines after taking off from New York's LaGuardia Airport. The plane, bound for Dallas, diverted to Philadelphia International Airport. Eight of the 144 passengers suffered minor injuries. The board noted that there are 14,600 CFM56-7B engines in service with 356,000 fan blades on the Boeing planes, with 400 million flights over more than two decades and two reported engine failures. CFM said it "will continue to strictly comply with regulatory requirements, including any changes that might be adopted as a result of NTSB's recommendations." Tammie Jo Shults, the flight's captain, recounted in her book "Nerves of Steel" published last month that the engine explosion felt "like we've been T-boned by a Mack truck." She said that the 737-700 rolled to the left and pulled into a dive, but that she and the co-pilot were able to level off the plane. The engine on the plane's left side spewed bits of metal when it blew apart, shattering a window and causing rapid cabin depressurization, the NTSB said. In 2018, the NTSB said two passengers eventually pulled Riordan, who was buckled into her seat, back inside the plane. CFM International, the engine manufacturer, is a transatlantic joint venture between General Electric Co and France's Safran SA. The issue does not impact the 737 MAX, the version of the plane that followed the 737 NG.