Qantas rejects calls to ground entire 737 NG fleet after cracks discovered on planes

Qantas has rejected calls to ground all of its Boeing 737 aircraft after cracks were discovered.

Australia’s aircraft engineers association has called on Qantas to ground all of its Boeing 737 NG aircraft after claiming cracks were discovered on one of its planes.

The crack is located in an area known as the “pickle fork” – a section that attaches the plane’s fuselage to the wing structure.

“These aircraft should not be flying,” the Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association (ALAEA) boss, Steven Purvinas, said.

Speaking to ABC, Purvinas indicated that another crack had been found in a second plane overnight.

The issue has affected aircraft worldwide, resulting in a total of 50 planes being grounded.

Qantas said it would immediately inspect all 33 planes, however, the airline described the call to ground its 737 fleet as “completely irresponsible”.

“Even when a crack is present, it does not immediately compromise the safety of the aircraft,” Qantas head of engineering Chris Snook said.

The news comes as another big blow to Boeing who are still recovering from the crashes of two 737 MAX planes.

According to reports, remedial work takes months to fix and require a special Boeing team.

The repair cost is estimated at $400,000 per aircraft.