A manufacturing defect will require the replacement of leading edge slat tracks on a small percentage of the global fleet of Boeing 737NG and Max aircraft. Operators operating affected aircraft have 10 days to identify and remove the discrepant parts, and an airworthiness directive will be issued, says the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
“Boeing has informed the FAA that certain 737NG and 737 Max leading-edge slat tracks may have been improperly manufactured and may not meet all applicable regulatory requirements for strength and durability,” it says. “The affected parts may be susceptible to premature failure or cracks resulting from the improper manufacturing process. Although a complete failure of a leading-edge slat track would not result in the loss of the aircraft, a risk remains that a failed part could lead to aircraft damage in fight.” The FAA adds that Boeing has identified up to 148 parts produced by an unidentified “sub-tier supplier” as being affected. Globally, the defect affects 133 NG and 179 Max aircraft.

Delta Air Lines has selected Boston Logan International airport as newest hub, in a rare growth move by a US network carrier establishing a new connecting complex. "We've been making significant investments in Boston this year… this has really enabled us to graduate Boston from what we consider a focus city to our newest coastal hub," says Amy Martin, managing director of domestic network planning at the Atlanta-based carrier, speaking at the Airport Council International-North America's Jump-start conference in Nashville yesterday. "Boston is actually very well positioned geographically to be a connecting point for US passengers going transatlantic," she says. "As we're getting to kind of our maximum capacity at [New York] JFK, using Boston as a secondary transatlantic gateway makes a lot of sense." "We're really focused on reinforcing our position as the number one global carrier in Boston," says Martin.

Portuguese investigators have found that an Embraer 190’s aileron cables had not been rigged the way they should have been, before a ferry flight, during which the pilots experienced severe in-flight control problems, in 2018.
The Air Astana aircraft went for scheduled maintenance at the OGMA facility at Alverca do Ribatejo before its departure for Almaty, via Minsk, on the 11th of November 2018. The crew experienced serious instability almost immediately after take off with abnormal attitudes, oscillations, momentary losses of control, and high structural loads during recovery maneuvering. Adverse weather conditions, intense g-forces, and continuous alerts from the cockpit systems worsened the situation. Such was the severity of the situation that the crew sought headings to fly out to sea, in order to ditch the aircraft.Portuguese investigation authority (GPIAA) says that a detailed examination of the E190 confirmed an “incorrect ailerons control cable system installation” on both wings. The six occupants of the aircraft – a captain and two first officers, plus three airline technicians – were all “physically and emotionally shaken” by the subsequent in-flight upset, but escaped serious injury.
GPIAA is continuing with the investigation in order to complete its analysis of the circumstances of the accident, and publish any relevant safety recommendations.