Air traffic US authority has Boeing's oxygen masks inspected

The US aviation authority is having the oxygen masks checked in over 2600 Boeing airplanes. The masks could slip due to problems with adhesive material.

The fault could impair the functionality of the technology, warned the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in an order published on Monday. There had been several reports that the units with oxygen masks had shifted.

Older and new variants of the Boeing 737 model are affected. The FAA is not yet able to estimate how many aircraft are affected by the defect and will require rework. The oxygen generators and masks are fitted above the seats.

Boeing is under particularly strong pressure to improve safety oversight in production. At the beginning of the year, a fuselage fragment broke out of a virtually new 737-9 Max aircraft in the middle of a climb. No one was injured. However, in addition to the hole in the fuselage, the seats were also left empty by a lucky coincidence.

SDA