Airlines inspecting Boeing planes after Southwest engine ripped apart mid-air

NTSB investigators on scene examining damage to the engine of the Southwest Airlines plane in Philadelphia
Investigators examine the damage to the engine of the Southwest Airlines plane in Philadelphia Credit: Reuters

Airlines are inspecting Boeing 737 planes after an engine on a passenger  flight ripped apart mid-air and killed a woman who came close to being  sucked through a broken window.

Jennifer Riordan, 43, was on a Southwest Airline flight from New York to  Dallas when a part of the engine shattered into the window and nearly  pulled her out. 

Mrs Riordan, a banking executive, was hauled back into the aircraft by  other passengers who attempted to resuscitate her but she later died of her  injuries. 

Jennifer Riordan was partially pulled out of the jet's window

Robert Sumwalt, the chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board  (NTSB) said an initial inspection of the failed engine found evidence of  metal fatigue where a fan blade had broken off. 

Mr Sumwalt said investigators were "very concerned" about the issue of  detecting slow-developing metal fatigue.  "There needs to be proper inspection mechanisms in place to check for this  before there's a catastrophic event." 

Jet engine scrutinised

All recent Boeing 737s are powered by engines from CFM, one of the world's  largest engine suppliers for commercial planes. 

In 2016, another Southwest flight was forced to make an emergency landing  after a fan blade separated from the same type of engine, and debris ripped  a foot-long hole above the left wing. Metal fatigue was cited in that  incident too. 

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CFM said on Wednesday that there are more than 8,000 of its CFM56-7B  engine - the model involved in Tuesday's incident - in operation on Boeing  737 passenger jets. 

Southwest, which operates one of the world's largest 737 fleets and has a  strong safety record, said it was speeding up inspections of all related  engines, which it expected to complete within 30 days. 

This month European regulators ordered engine checks following a lengthy  analysis of the 2016 Southwest incident but investigators said it is too  early to say whether the two problems are linked. 

The incident on Tuesday, the first fatal US airline accident in almost a  decade, left seven others injured on the 144-passenger plane. 

James Healy-Pratt, a pilot and aviation lawyer, said: "Uncontained engine  failures are rare but can be devastating. It is where a turbine blade  breaks off at high speed within the engine and projects shrapnel through  the protective Kevlar engine cowling, designed to stop that. 

"The crew did well to get the aircraft down. The question remains how and  why the protective Kevlar cowling did not do its job." 

Bob Mann, an aviation consultant, said the question was whether current  inspection requirements had been met. 

"If it is determined to be CFM56-7B fan blade root fatigue failure, as was  the earlier 2016 SWA Airworthiness Directive could be  expected from aviation oversight agencies," he said. 

He added: "As to the window puncture, despite all simulations, we don't  really have a very good idea of where high energy rotating turbine parts  will go if they do depart the containment rings and casings, so more  attention may be paid to how engine containment is tested and certified as  flight-worthy." 

Southwest is not inspecting all of its CFM56 engines, instead focusing on  older models, according to a source.  It is likely its inspections "are in the 400 to 600 engine range in order  to wrap this up in 30 days," the source said. 

Hero pilot

Meanwhile the "hero" pilot of the Southwest plane has been praised for her  "nerves of steel" in carrying out an emergency landing in Philadelphia  during the freak accident. 

Tammie Jo Shults, a former fighter pilot with the US Navy, told emergency  services: “We have part of the aircraft missing, so we’re going to need to  slow down a bit.” 

Pilot Tammie Jo Shults was praised for her handling of the mid-air drama

“We’ve got injured passengers,” Ms Shults added, pausing for a moment, “they said there’s a hole, and uh, someone went out.” 

Others on board the Dallas-bound flight braced for impact as oxygen masks  muffled their screams.  After touching down, the pilot walked through the aisle to meet her  passengers. 

"She has nerves of steel that lady, I applaud her," said passenger Alfred  Tumlinson. 

Mr Tumlinson said a man in a cowboy hat rushed forward a few rows to grab  Mrs Riordan and pull her back in. 

"She was out of the plane. He couldn't do it by himself, so another  gentleman came over and helped to get her back in the plane, and they got  her," he said.