Inspection results from DC9's and MD80's. So far, the airlines have reported potential problems on 23 aircraft to the federal government. Leading the way in reports was Alaska Airlines, which said eight of 34 planes deserve a closer look. The airline's report to the FAA comes as investigators are paying special attention to Alaska Airline's maintenance practices before Flight 261 crashed off the California coast Jan. 31. All 88 people on board were killed.
Federal officials are interested in how well the planes' horizontal stabilizers are performing.
Alaska replaced the jackscrews in four of the planes and are evaluating the parts in the other four. Airlines that found irregularities in jackscrews and then replaced them are sending the parts to the NTSB lab for examination, FAA spokesman Eliot Brenner said. As to the large number of planes Alaska Airlines reported as having potential problems, Brenner said the airline may be taking precautions. Inspection Alaska Airlines Flight 261 was in for a heavy maintenance check in September 1997 at the Oakland facility owned by Alaska Airlines. The airline had inspected the gimbal nut, the mechanism that moves the stabilizer with the jackscrew, and determined it needed to be replaced.