Dozens of Boeing jets grounded due to ‘pickle fork’ cracks

Dozens of older Boeing 737 planes have been grounded worldwide after inspectors found cracks in a part that connects wings to fuselages, the manufacturer said. Qantas grounded three of its Boeing 737 NG, or next generation, aircraft, it said Friday. “These aircraft have been removed from service for repair,” it said. Cracks in the so-called pickle forks is the latest problem to hit Boeing, which is mired in crisis over its grounded 737 Max planes after two fatal crashes. The problem does not apply to the 737 Max, which has been grounded since mid-March in the wake of the second crash of the nearly brand-new jets. The inspections were conducted after Boeing warned about the issue and the FAA ordered inspections within a week for aircraft that had flown more than 30,000 flights and for aircraft between 26,000 and 29,999 cycles within 1,000 flights. Boeing said more than 1,000 planes met the conditions for the inspections and less than 5% qualified for repairs. Qantas said it inspected 33 of its 737 NG planes, performing the checks ahead of schedule as a precaution. American Airlines and United Airlines are inspecting their older 737 NGs, but have so far not found any problems, the companies said. Delta Air Lines said it hasn’t found any structural fatigue in its 737 planes after it took “an extra look during the past few weeks,” said spokesman Morgan Durrant. The repairs cost at least $275,000 for both wings, according to aviation consulting firm IBA.<br/>