(WBAP/KLIF) – The National Transportation Safety Board issued seven safety recommendations Tuesday based on findings from the investigation into the death on board Southwest Airlines Flight 1380. Jennifer Riordan woman was killed when she was partially sucked out of a plane window during an engine failure.
The accident happened after Southwest Airlines flight 1380 departed New York’s LaGuardia Airport, bound for Love Field, Dallas, Texas. The flight crew conducted an emergency descent and diverted to Philadelphia International Airport. There were 144 passengers and five crewmembers aboard.
“This accident demonstrates that a fan blade can fail and release differently than that observed during engine certification testing and accounted for in airframe structural analyses,” sai NTSB Chairman Robert Sumwalt. “It is important to go beyond routine examination of fan blades; the structural integrity of the engine nacelle components for various airframe and engine combinations needs to be ensured.”
The NTSB determined that a fractured fan blade powering Southwest’s Boeing 737-700, led to a damaged fuselage, resulting in a rapid cabin depressurization.
The board issued two reccomendations Southwest Airlines and five to the FAA. Boeing was told to redesign a flawed engine casing.
An abstract of the final report, which includes the findings, probable cause, and all safety recommendations, is available at https://go.usa.gov/xp9kv.
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