FAA To Order Boeing 767 Safety Checks

FAA plans to order safety checks of more than 400 Boeing 767s because of elevator flight control surfaces that may jam and possibly cause some pilots to lose control of the aircraft.

Elevators that do not work correctly have not been identified as causing a 767 accident.

Federal Aviation Administration, set for publication in Monday's Federal register, calls for enhanced inspections of the elevator flight control mechanism, which helps planes climb and descend.

FAA first became aware of the problem in 2000, when it ordered enhanced checks to find problems. The inspections at that time were viewed as a temporary response. Boeing eventually designed a permanent fix, which the FAA order will direct airlines to make, according the Journal.