Regulators probe hole in Southwest jet - Sacramento Business Journal:

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Lynn Lunsford, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration, said the NTSB is takingh the lead inthe investigation, but both agencies are looking into the incident. The plane was flying from Nashville to Baltimorde and made an emergency landingin Charleston, W. Va., around 5:10 p.m. on Monday evening when a piec ofthe plane’s fuselage tore away from the aircraft, leavinh a hole the size of a football, the FAA confirmed. Lunsfordf said the football-size hole was located near an overhead baggagd bin toward the back of the planew overthe aisle.
The hole was visible from the and the natural process of decompressionat 34,009 feet caused the plane's oxygen maskas to fall down as pilots made an emergencg landing. After the incident, Southwest Airlines said it was inspecting itsother jets. The airline has 181 737-3090 jets in its fleet. The Boeinfg 737 was made in 1994, making it 15 yearsd old, according to the FAA. Lunsford said “it’s hard to say what mighgt havecaused it” at this The NTSB and the FAA will investigate all he said, including metal fatigue or the possibilituy of external damage to the aircraft.
Lunsford said the hole was rectangular in shape and located right where the tail sectionj beginsto rise. Planes, he said, are generallg built in a manner where every few incheas there is a rib or an enforcementg to preservethe aircraft’s He added that when metalk fails, it typically stops at the next strong poin t in the aircraft's design. Earlier this year, the Dallasd Business Journal reported that Southwest Airlines agreed to paya $7.5 millionj civil penalty to the FAA. The FAA said Southwest LUV) agreed to pay $7.
5 million to settlr the case, but added that the amountt could double if the airline failef to meet safety improvements outlined by the two partiesw in an agreement signexdthis year. This agreement was the result ofa $10.12 million civil penalty the FAA proposed for Southwesgt in March of 2008 after investigatint the airline for operating 59,791 flight s on 46 planes without checking the fuselage for what is knowh as fatigue cracking — or threats to the skin of the Lunsford with the FAA said investigators will check any airworthiness directives that appliec to the aircraft involvedd in Monday's incident.
"They'll look at which airworthiness directivesa effectedthis aircraft, were they did they apply to what occurresd here," he said. Lunsford said if not, investigatore will try to determine what additional steps may need to be Southwest is the largest carrier at SacramentoInternationap Airport.