Safety check
During the press conference Malaysia Airlines was asked whether it was aware of a warning by the US officials about potential cracking that could compromise the safety of the Boeing 777.
In November the Federal Aviation Administration warned airlines to look out for corrosion under the skin of the fuselage.
The
Daily Telegraph reported it warning:
We received a report of cracking and corrosion in the fuselage skin underneath the SATCOM antenna adapter . During a maintenance planning data inspection, one operator reported a 16-inch crack under the 3-bay SATCOM antenna adapter plate in the crown skin of the fuselage on an aeroplane that was 14 years old with approximately 14,000 total flight cycles.
Rahman was asked whether he had full confidence in the structural integrity of the missing Boeing 777 aircraft. He said: “From our records the aircraft when its flying is airworthy. It complies to all the directives.”
He confirmed that Malaysia had received the warning from the FAA about the Boeing’s fuselage.
Malaysia Airlines chief executive Ahmad Jauhari Yahyain added: “We ensure that all our aircraft are airworthy and comply with all the [circulars] issued by the manufacturers.”
He said he would check whether the missing plane was inspected for the known fault.