Boeing alters its estimate for plane inspections

A Southwest Airlines passenger jet prepares to land at Midway Airport in Chicago on Tuesday. STORY HIGHLIGHTSThe company thought cracks would appear later in a plane's lifespanEngineer: It's "regrettable that we had to accelerate our plans"Boeing says 175 planes worldwide are affected by service bulletin Washington (CNN) -- Boeing engineers had anticipated the aluminum skin and "lap joints" on certain Boeing 737s would need to be inspected for cracks after roughly 60,000 take-off and landing cycles, but the company drastically altered that estimate in the wake of the fuselage rupture on a Southwest Airlines flight with only 39,000 cycles.

Boeing this week issued a bulletin advising operators of similar aircraft to inspect the planes for subsurface skin cracks after only 30,000 cycles.

The Federal Aviation Administration on Tuesday mandated the earlier inspections and took it one step further, ordering the inspections be repeated every 500 cycles thereafter, at least until the cause of the April 1 rupture can be determined.

In a conference call with reporters, Boeing engineer Paul Richter said the company has long recognized cracks as a problem on the lower row of fastener holes on the skin panels, but believed the cracks would appear much later in the aircraft's lifespan.

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FAA to issue directive on inspections

Southwest planes being inspectedSTORY HIGHLIGHTSThe FAA says it plans to mandate inspections of certain 737sAbout 175 planes will be subject to inspectionBy Monday afternoon, Southwest had inspected 67 of its 79 grounded jetsThe joint where the breach opened had been visually, not electromagnetically, inspected (CNN) -- The Federal Aviation Administration plans to issue a directive Tuesday mandating operators of about 175 older Boeing 737s to conduct inspections for wear and tear.

The "emergency directive" comes just days after a Boeing 737 flown by Southwest Airlines made an emergency landing with a hole in its fuselage.

The FAA mandate would affect about 80 U.S.-registered 737-300s, 737-400s and 737-500s, mostly operated by Southwest. The remaining 95 or so aircraft are registered outside the United States.

Each of the 175 or so planes in question have taken off and landed more than 30,000 times and will receive repetitive electromagnetic inspections at regular intervals for fatigue damage.

In a separate statement, Boeing said it was working with the FAA, the National Transportation Safety Board and Southwest, and it was preparing a service bulletin to recommend lap joint inspections on certain 737 models.

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Southwest to cancel about 100 flights as inspections continue

Hole forces a Boeing 737 to landSTORY HIGHLIGHTSA hole opened on top of a Boeing 737 during flightDuring inspections, investigators find indications of cracks in three other aircraftThe inspections are expected to be complete on TuesdayBoeing declines to comment on the possible cause of the incident (CNN) -- Southwest Airlines expects to cancel about 100 flights from its Monday schedule as investigators continue inspecting its fleet, the airline said.

The Texas-based airline grounded 79 planes for inspection after a hole opened on top of a Boeing 737 mid-flight Friday.

It canceled approximately 600 flights to accommodate the inspections: 300 on Saturday and 300 flights on Sunday.

So far, investigators have found indications of cracks in three other aircraft, the National Transportation Safety Board said Sunday.

Of the planes inspected, 19 had returned to service by Sunday afternoon, the airline said.

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