FAA orders emergency inspections of 352 engines following deadly Southwest incident
The Federal Aviation Administration issued an emergency order on Friday for airlines to inspect engines like the one involved in Tuesday's fatal incident involving Southwest Airlines Flight 1380, according to an FAA spokesperson.
Engines with more 30,000 total takeoffs and landings must be inspected within 20 days.
CFM International, the maker of the engines subject to the order, estimated 352 engines in the U.S. are affected and 681 worldwide.
The inspections will focus on the fan blades, the FAA said. The National Transportation Safety Board said an engine fan blade on Flight 1380 suffered metal fatigue before breaking.
The woman who died was sitting over the wing on the Boeing 737 when the engine failed and she was partially sucked out a broken window. Fellow passengers pulled the woman back in and attempted to revive her.
She later died.
Southwest already announced it was starting an “accelerated inspection” of its fleet after the deadly failure, and other airlines have announced their own inspection plans. American Airlines said it started additional inspections of its 737s before Tuesday's accident, while the directive was being debated.
In a letter to passengers obtained by ABC News, Southwest offered sincere apologies as well as a $5,000 check and the promise of a $1,000 travel voucher. The letter also states that the airline’s primary focus now is to assist the passengers who were aboard the flight in every way possible.
A Southwest Airlines official confirmed to ABC News that the letters were sent by the airline, but would not comment on the monetary compensation.
The NTSB investigation is expected to take 12 to 15 months.
