NTSB Issues Urgent Safety Recommendations on Boeing 737 Rudder System
The NTSB has issued urgent safety recommendations for Boeing 737 rudder systems after a United Airlines incident. Moisture in actuators poses risks, prompting calls for alternative pilot responses and actuator removals.
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The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has issued urgent safety recommendations regarding the rudder control system on certain Boeing 737 models, specifically the 737NG and 737MAX. This action follows an incident on February 6, 2024, where the rudder pedals of a United Airlines Boeing 737-8 became stuck during landing at Newark Liberty International Airport. Although there were no injuries or damage, the incident raised concerns about the potential for a jammed rudder system. Investigations revealed that moisture accumulation in the rudder rollout guidance actuators, due to improper assembly of sealed bearings, could lead to system failure. The NTSB has urged Boeing to explore alternative pilot responses to a jammed rudder, rather than relying solely on maximum force, which could result in dangerous rudder deflections. Additionally, the NTSB has recommended that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) assess whether affected actuators should be removed from service and to inform international aviation regulators about the issue. The investigation is ongoing, and further updates may be provided as new information emerges.
- NTSB issued urgent safety recommendations for Boeing 737 rudder systems.
- Incident involved stuck rudder pedals during landing, with no injuries reported.
- Moisture in actuators due to assembly errors poses a safety risk.
- Recommendations include alternative pilot responses and potential actuator removals.
- Ongoing investigation may lead to further updates.
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NTSB Issues Urgent Safety Recommendations on Boeing 737 Rudder System
The NTSB has issued urgent safety recommendations for Boeing 737 rudder systems after a United Airlines incident. Moisture accumulation in actuators poses risks, affecting over 353 units since 2017.
6 commentsThese things are relatively common in aviation. An incident happened, everything went OK, but during the investigation a problem was found. The NTSB then writes a set of recommendations and it's likely that the FAA will issue an Airworthiness Directive (AD) that tells all operators to fix this problem.
Depending on the severity and the FAA's estimate of the risk that AD will either be a "fix now" which is very disruptive or a "fix at the next [some type] inspection" which is more common.
Specifically with this component the NTSB seems to think it can be removed until a replacement is available:
> Additionally, the NTSB recommended that the FAA determine if actuators with incorrectly assembled bearings should be removed from airplanes, and if so, to direct U.S. operators to do so until replacements are available.
In that case the plane won't be able to do a cat III autoland anymore, but from the text is looks like it would operate normally apart from that restriction.
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