US Transportation Safety Board Issues Urgent Alert About Boeing 737 Rudders

America's National Transportation Safety Board "is issuing 'urgent safety recommendations' for some Boeing 737s..." reports CNN, "warning that critical flight controls could jam." The independent investigative agency is issuing the warning that an actuator attached to the rudder on some 737 NG and 737 MAX airplanes could fail... "Boeing's 737 flight manual instructs pilots confronted with a jammed or restricted rudder to 'overpower the jammed or restricted system (using) maximum force, including a combined effort of both pilots,'" the NTSB said in a news release. "The NTSB expressed concern that this amount of force applied during landing or rollout could result in a large input to the rudder pedals and a sudden, large, and undesired rudder deflection that could unintentionally cause loss of control or departure from a runway," the statement said.
"The FAA said United was the only U.S. airline flying planes with the manufacturing defect in the rudder control system," notes the Seattle Times, "and that United has already replaced the component on nine 737s, the only jets in its fleet where it was identified as faulty. However, the NTSB alert may cause the grounding of some 737 MAXs and older model 737NGs flown by foreign air carriers that have not yet replaced the defective part."

That's not very typical, for the rudder to fall of

[Rademir]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3m5qxZm_JqM

Re:That's not very typical, for the rudder to fall

[Drethon]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3m5qxZm_JqM

While I know this is a joke, I wish rudder issues in 737s was not something that has happened before. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]

Re:

[sjames]

Isn't that the one where in cold conditions the rudder actuator could move opposite to the pilot's command and jam?

It sounds like they never fully fixed the flaw.

Re: That's not very typical, for the rudder to fal

[Kyogreex]

It sounds like they never fully fixed the flaw.

They completely redesigned the unit to prevent that failure mode. This is a different issue entirely and applies only to a small portion of 737s. Still not a good look for Boeing, though.

Re: That's not very typical, for the rudder to fal

[buck-yar]

After conducting testing in a cold environment, investigators discovered that the function of the component was "significantly compromised." Collins Aerospace subsequently discovered that the component was incorrectly assembled during production.

https://www.foxbusiness.com/li... [foxbusiness.com]

Re:

[arglebargle_xiv]

So all you need to do is fly the 737's outside the environment, so it's beyond the environment, and you're fine. Nothing out there but sea and birds and fish.

Re:

[stooo]

Nothing out there but sea and birds and fish, and a sunk Boeing 737 with the remains of 200 passengers on the bottom of the sea.

Re:

[Falconhell]

Ah, the much missed excellent John Clarke, RIP.
“Its been towed beyond the environment, theres nothing out there, a complete void.”

737 MAX needs to have an MAX REFUND aka 100%

[Joe_Dragon]

737 MAX needs to have an MAX REFUND aka 100%

Re:

[stooo]

You understood wrong.
They will take your 737 and give you a 73 MAX as a refund.

Boeings don't bounce.

[johnnys]

FFS, you'd think that after the 737 rudder hardover problems in the 90s which got so much terrible press for Boeing, that they would at least put the "A" engineering team on anything to do with changes to the rudder on those aircraft and not Larry, Moe and Curly.

At least this time the d**ned rudder is stuck in the middle and not hardover, but pull up your socks, Boeing! You're not making tiddlywinks.

Re:

[Rademir]

How many of Boeing's "A" engineering team members do you think have left over the last 20 years?

It's going to take them a while of, um, turning the rudder to get Boeing flying right again.

Re:

[tlhIngan]

How many of Boeing's "A" engineering team members do you think have left over the last 20 years?

Over 25 years actually. McDonnell-Douglas took over Boeing in 1997.

Re: Boeings don't bounce.

[Fortnite_Beast]

Maybe they can get SpaceX to design the new system for them.

Move fast and break things?

[Anonymous Coward]

Maybe they can get SpaceX to design the new system for them.

Their usual procedure is to blow stuff up and see what went wrong.

Good way to learn fast, but poor idea for passenger aircraft.

Fuck that shit

[paul_engr]

Don't make the pilots work harder. Just make the passengers roll the window down and flap their arms. Seems like something that scans with their pull hard "correction" suggestion

Re:

[phantomfive]

That's a creative way to put it! While flapping arms might not be the most effective way to fix a rudder, it does paint a vivid picture of teamwork and effort. In reality, fixing a rudder would require some technical skills and the right tools. But I love the imaginative approach!

Re:

[LazarusQLong]

they don't need to flap, just stick their arms out on the side of the plane that is in the direction you want to turn, so portside passengers for port turns and starboardside passengers for starboard turn.

The added benefit is that you'll no longer need to paint your aircraft, so long as blood red is a color you want your aircraft to be...

I foresee a world where all airlines incorporate a blood red swoosh on the sides of their aircraft...

an added benefit is that almost none of those passengers will be

Groundhog Day

[angel'o'sphere]

It seems lately all news is about Boing, Intel, Apple, Microsoft, Starlink, Space X ...
And somehow: they are always the same.

I am in s time loop, right?

Re:

[antdude]

We are all in this time loop. :(

Re:

[cusco]

You mean someone besides the executives milking the company? Heretic! Corporations exist solely to enrich executives, didn't you know? /s

It's really sad that I have to use the /sarcasm tag now, because there are people who really think that way.

There's a metaphor here somewhere ...

[fahrbot-bot]

Boeing fired their CEO and other top executives (or they've otherwise left) and the NTSB issues a warning about the company's rudders.

Too many words

[jalvarez13]

I believe they need to issue an "Urgent Alert About Boeing", with no added words.