Southwest Airlines inspected all 181 of its Boeing 737-300 jets overnight after a small section of the fuselage on one jet peeled up Monday, prompting a rapid decompression and an emergency landing in West Virginia.
Passengers aboard Flight 2294 from Nashville to Baltimore could see through the approximately 1-foot-by-1-foot hole in the top of the jet near where the vertical fin rises from the jet's tail. The flight was carrying 126 passengers and five crew.
Passenger Brian Cunningham told NBC's Today show Tuesday that he had dozed off in his seat in mid-cabin when he was awakened by "the loudest roar I'd ever heard."
He said the hole was above his seat. People stayed calm and put on the oxygen masks that dropped from the ceiling.
"After we landed in Charleston, the pilot came out and looked up through the hole, and everybody applauded, shook his hand, a couple of people gave him hugs," Cunningham said.
Teams from the National Transportation Safety Board, Federal Aviation Administration and Boeing were arriving in Charleston to examine the jet.
The damage was similar to several incidents in previous decades, including cases that caused fatalities.
The highest death count in aviation history occurred on Aug. 12, 1985, when a Japan Air Lines 747 suddenly decompressed, damaging the jet's hydraulic system and rendering it uncontrollable. The jet slammed into a mountain, killing 520 of the 524 people aboard. The accident was blamed on a faulty repair that had been done seven years earlier.
A flight attendant died on an Aloha Airlines 737 on April 28, 1988, when 18 feet of the jet's skin peeled back at 24,000 feet. The NTSB ruled that undetected fatigue had weakened the jet. The accident prompted broad new inspections of aging aircraft.
The Southwest 737 was delivered to the airline in 1994, said airline spokeswoman Beth Harbin. Inspections of the 180 other 737-300s in the airline's fleet overnight showed no evidence of anything unusual, Harbin said. About 20 flights experienced minor delays this morning as maintenance workers conducted the inspections.
The airline sent a backup jet to Charleston to pick up the passengers after the emergency landing. They arrived in Baltimore at about 9 p.m., about two hours late, Harbin said.
Last March, Southwest agreed to pay $7.5 million to settle charges that it operated planes that had missed required safety inspections for cracks in the fuselage. The inspections were prompted by the 1988 Aloha crash.
The airline had made nearly 60,000 flights without the required inspections. A senior FAA inspector allowed the airline to make some of the flights even after the missed inspections came to light.
Southwest performed all of the necessary inspections last year and insisted that safety had not been compromised.
Federal regulations require aircraft manufacturers to build a jet's fuselage strong enough so that if a hole opens up in flight it will not spread or damage the nearby structure.
Dallas-based Southwest carries more than 100 million U.S. passengers a year, more than any other airline.
Showing posts with label southwest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label southwest. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
Southwest Kicks Off Services from New York LaGuardia
Southwest Airlines kicked off its new service out of New York’s LaGuardia Airport over the weekend with its “New Service, New Attitude, New York” themed celebration. Southwest Customers and employees dined on New York-style bagels while being serenaded by Southwest’s rapping flight attendant, David Holmes.
New Yorkers can enjoy Southwest’s service and low fares, while Washington, D.C.- and Chicago-based customers now have a new low-fare option for flying to La Guardia, according to Greg Wells, Southwest’s senior vice president of operations. Southwest Airlines is now serving New York City travelers from LaGuardia with eight daily nonstop flights -- five daily nonstops to Chicago Midway and three daily nonstop flights to Baltimore/Washington. In addition to the eight daily nonstop flights, Southwest Airlines will offer direct or connecting service to more than 45 destinations from New York City, including Las Vegas, Denver, Los Angeles, Seattle and San Diego. Southwest operates from Gate B4 in LaGuardia’s Central Terminal Building.
Earlier in the week, Southwest Airlines celebrated at the Southwest Porch at Bryant Park in New York City with customers and employees. Southwest employees will continue its community involvement with volunteer activity at Flushing Meadows, where employees will clean up the park.
New Yorkers can enjoy Southwest’s service and low fares, while Washington, D.C.- and Chicago-based customers now have a new low-fare option for flying to La Guardia, according to Greg Wells, Southwest’s senior vice president of operations. Southwest Airlines is now serving New York City travelers from LaGuardia with eight daily nonstop flights -- five daily nonstops to Chicago Midway and three daily nonstop flights to Baltimore/Washington. In addition to the eight daily nonstop flights, Southwest Airlines will offer direct or connecting service to more than 45 destinations from New York City, including Las Vegas, Denver, Los Angeles, Seattle and San Diego. Southwest operates from Gate B4 in LaGuardia’s Central Terminal Building.
Earlier in the week, Southwest Airlines celebrated at the Southwest Porch at Bryant Park in New York City with customers and employees. Southwest employees will continue its community involvement with volunteer activity at Flushing Meadows, where employees will clean up the park.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Southwest Piloting Onboard Wi-Fi
Southwest Airlines today launched a one-airplane pilot test of inflight wireless Internet with satellite connectivity supplier Row 44. In the next month, Southwest plans to expand the trial to three more aircraft.
The carrier is offering onboard Wi-Fi for free during the trial period, though it plans ultimately to monetize the offering, a spokesperson said today.
Though Southwest did not disclose price points, as it awaits trial results, Row 44 CEO John Guidon said, "If we were selling this as a retail service, meaning if the airlines weren't marketing it, then we'd probably put it somewhere in that $7.99 region, but we have really no input on how much the airlines will charge. They'll charge as they'll see fit and I'm sure it will be a good value."
Southwest expects the trial to extend "for the next few months." The Southwest trial is the first with Row 44, though Alaska Airlines, which already has inked an agreement with the provider, is expected to roll out the service "extremely soon," Guidon said.
Southwest said expansion beyond the pilot requires Federal Communications Commission approval, as Row 44 continues to wrap up its permits. "We're in a process that we've been navigating through for some months, and we're getting very close to the end of that process," said Guidon.
The carrier said the service is compatible with any Wi-Fi-enabled device, including laptops and smart phones, though "cellular technology will not work."
Southwest joins a growing number of domestic airlines that are bringing Wi-Fi onboard. American Airlines and Delta Air Lines in the past year have rolled out Wi-Fi on a limited domestic basis in conjunction with Aircell. American Airlines in August began rolling out the service across its 15-plane Boeing 767-200 fleet, while Delta is planning a fleetwide domestic rollout of the service, which this week launched on its 20th domestic aircraft. United Airlines last month also announced plans to outfit 13 transcontinental Boeing 757 aircraft with inflight wireless Internet capabilities in the second half of the year.
The carrier is offering onboard Wi-Fi for free during the trial period, though it plans ultimately to monetize the offering, a spokesperson said today.
Though Southwest did not disclose price points, as it awaits trial results, Row 44 CEO John Guidon said, "If we were selling this as a retail service, meaning if the airlines weren't marketing it, then we'd probably put it somewhere in that $7.99 region, but we have really no input on how much the airlines will charge. They'll charge as they'll see fit and I'm sure it will be a good value."
Southwest expects the trial to extend "for the next few months." The Southwest trial is the first with Row 44, though Alaska Airlines, which already has inked an agreement with the provider, is expected to roll out the service "extremely soon," Guidon said.
Southwest said expansion beyond the pilot requires Federal Communications Commission approval, as Row 44 continues to wrap up its permits. "We're in a process that we've been navigating through for some months, and we're getting very close to the end of that process," said Guidon.
The carrier said the service is compatible with any Wi-Fi-enabled device, including laptops and smart phones, though "cellular technology will not work."
Southwest joins a growing number of domestic airlines that are bringing Wi-Fi onboard. American Airlines and Delta Air Lines in the past year have rolled out Wi-Fi on a limited domestic basis in conjunction with Aircell. American Airlines in August began rolling out the service across its 15-plane Boeing 767-200 fleet, while Delta is planning a fleetwide domestic rollout of the service, which this week launched on its 20th domestic aircraft. United Airlines last month also announced plans to outfit 13 transcontinental Boeing 757 aircraft with inflight wireless Internet capabilities in the second half of the year.
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