NTSB Urges Changes for 737 Rudders

The National Transportation Safety Board has suggested ways to improve the safety of the rudders on Boeing 737s, the world’s most widely used airliner. Last month the board concluded that two fatal accidents and a serious in-flight upset involving 737s this decade were most likely caused by jamming of a key hydraulic control valve in the rudder systems. The board said in a letter that the rudders could be given several hydraulic controls like the larger 757 and 767 aircraft without major structural changes. There are more than 3,000 737s in service around the world, about 1,300 of them registered in the United States.