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Station Home Page & More Local Information Alaska mechanics in Portland, Ore., and Seattle found two MD-80s with shavings in the horizontal stabilizer assemblies. Problems found on six jets LOS ANGELES, February 11  At least three more jetliners were found Friday with the same tail wing problem that has become the focus of the investigation into last weeks crash of Alaska Airlines Flight 261.

Northwest Aviation Connection SPECIAL COVERAGE: Crash of Alaska Airlines Flight 261

A TOTAL of six aircraft, including the plane that crashed Jan. 31, had unusual metal shavings in their tail wing assemblies, the National Transportation Safety Board said. The planes grounded Friday belong to Alaska Airlines and Delta Air Lines, the NTSB said. A day earlier, Alaska found two other jets with the same flaws, prompting the Federal Aviation Administration to order the inspection of all MD-80 and similar aircraft. The problems were found on the jackscrew assemblies, like this one from another Boeing jet. FAA officials declined to comment on the NTSBs announcement. We have initial, unconfirmed reports that we need to verify before we release any information, said Paul Takemoto, an agency spokesman. The investigation into the Jan. 31 crash of Alaska Airlines Flight 261 is focusing on the horizontal stabilizer because the pilots reported trouble controlling the device before the MD-83 plunged into the Pacific. All 88 people aboard were killed. The Ventura County Medical Examiners office has identified the remains of 35 of the passengers, a spokeswoman said Friday. The office has not received any new remains since Monday. The Navy reported it recovered significant pieces of wreckage from the ocean Friday. Among them were large portions of the planes left and right elevators, which are part of the horizontal stabilizer system. Also found was an 8-foot section of the planes outboard right stabilizer. The FAAs inspection order affects about 1,200 planes, including MD-80s, MD-90s, Boeing 717s and DC-9s. The first part of the inspections must be completed by Monday, but the FAA is giving airlines 30 days to perform a more detailed check. Alaska Airlines confirmed it pulled a third plane from service due to a mechanical problem discovered during an inspection in Portland, Ore., but the carrier would not disclose whether the problem was related to metal shavings. Delta Air Lines mechanics found two MD-90s with a gritty residue below the horizontal stabilizer and took the aircraft out of service at least until Saturday. Were continuing to look at the planes and analyzing the residue, but we strongly suspect well have these planes back in service tomorrow, said Clay McConnell, a Delta spokesman. Several other airlines reported finding irregularities during the inspections. Continental Airlines said a quarter-inch metal shaving was found in the tail wing mechanism of an out-of-service MD-80 undergoing scheduled maintenance. The problem was reported to the FAA, but all other inspections were uneventful, a spokesman said. Northwest Airlines pulled a DC-9 from service after unspecified irregularities were found in the tail wing assembly. The section was removed for further analysis and the plane was expected to fly again Saturday, a spokesman said. American Airlines mechanics in Reno, Nev., discovered an MD-90s tail wing assembly needed lubrication, but there was no evidence of unusual wear, said spokesman John Hotard. Alaska Airlines canceled a dozen flights Friday as it repeated inspections made before the FAA issued its order, said spokesman Jack Evans. Other airlines reported no major schedule disruptions. Were talking a dozen flights out of 500 or so we launch daily so overall impact is still very small, he said. Investigators probing the crash of Alaska Flight 261 are focusing on a part that moves the stabilizer, a 40-foot tail-mounted wing that controls the up-and-down pitch of the aircrafts nose during flight. A 2-foot-long, rod-like jackscrew that drives the stabilizer was recovered and found to be entwined with metal shavings believed to have come from an 8-inch gimbal nut that was later retrieved from the Pacific and found to have damaged threads. It remained unclear whether the damage occurred before the crash or was the result of the planes impact with the ocean. Metal experts were examining the pieces. An Associated Press review of maintenance records from 1990 through 1999 found no reports of stripped gimbal nuts in the jetliners covered in the order. The inspections have prompted varying reactions from the flying public, with some people saying they are avoiding MD-80s series planes until the situation is resolved, while others have expressed few concerns. Howard Applebaum, 52, of Los Angeles said he had no qualms shortly before he boarded an Alaska Airlines flight to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. They wont let them get off the ground if theres a problem, he said. Its safer to fly than it is to drive a car, especially in L.A. )2000 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

-- RAT (eyesopen@watcher.com), February 12, 2000

Answers

Hi Rat - you asked yesterday, how to do links. I'm going to do one here for your article. Once you read it go to VIEW on the top of your browser and view page source and see how I did it, LINK You precede the url with code and you follow it with code and then the word like and then follow with code.

-- Sheri (wncy2k@nccn.net), February 12, 2000.

1. highlight and copy the url 2. a = anchor href = hypertext reference, so put a < and then a href = I will use a ( because the < will disappear 3. ( a href = " now your url ") 4. that part will be invisible. now write LINK 5. Now you have to "shut off the anchor. use < (/a) Whole line of code (remember, use < not ( (a href = "http://www.msnbc.com/local/king/529246.asp")link(/a)

-- (kb8um8@yahoo.com), February 12, 2000.

let me see if I remember how to space html ... I'm hand coding

1. highlight and copy the url

2. a = anchor href = hypertext reference, so put a < and then a href = I will use a ( because the < will disappear

3. ( a href = " now your url ")

4. that part will be invisible. now write LINK

5. Now you have to "shut off the anchor. use < (/a) Whole line of code (remember, use < not (

(a href = "http://www.msnbc.com/local/king/529246.asp")link(/a)

-- (kb8um8@yahho.com), February 12, 2000.