40 global airlines could be flying defective Boeing 737s: NTSB

More than 40 global operators may be using Boeing 737 aircraft with defective rudder components which could pose safety risks. The issue has been flagged by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in a letter to the U.S. aviation regulator Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The letter, however, does not name the airlines which are using the potentially defective aircraft. It does say that none of the U.S. airlines were flying the 737 aircraft with the defective parts.

According to the NTSB, 271 impacted parts were likely installed in aircraft operated by at least 40 foreign airlines. It added that 16 may still be installed on U.S.-registered aircraft and up to 75 may have been used in aftermarket installation. The affected aircraft include 737 Max and 737 NG aircraft.

In India, the Boeing 737 aircraft is operated by Air India Express, SpiceJet, Akasa Air and the soon-to-be-launched Shankh Air.

The NTSB had on September 26 issued urgent safety recommendations about a potential jammed rudder control system on some 737 airplanes which involved cockpit pedals that control the jet's rudder getting stuck. In February, a United Airlines 737 Max 8 landing in Newark had its rudder pedals “stuck” in the neutral position. There were no injuries to the 161 passengers and crew.

According to the NTSB, two foreign operators suffered similar incidents in 2019 involving rollout guidance actuators.

“We are concerned of the possibility that other airlines are unaware of the presence of these actuators on their 737 airplanes,” NTSB Chairperson Jennifer Homendy said in its letter to the FAA.

The NTSB also criticised Boeing for failing to inform United the 737s it received were equipped with actuators “mechanically connected to the rudder control system” and expressed concerns other airlines were unaware of their presence. “Flight crews may not know what to expect if the rollout guidance actuator fails at low altitude or during landing,” the NTSB said, calling the failure “unacceptable.”

Boeing declined to comment on the letter. It had, however, said last week that it had informed affected 737 operators of a “potential condition with the rudder rollout guidance actuator” in August.

The issue is the latest setback to Boeing, which has faced a series of safety issues in the past few years. These include two crashes of 737 Max aircraft where 346 people were killed. The aircraft type was grounded for 20 months. Another aircraft faced a door plug blowout in January 2024. In a major embarrassment, flaws in a space capsule built by Boeing left two astronauts stranded in the International Space Station.