A Southwest Airlines plane performed an unusual maneuver on May 25 at an altitude of more than 10 kilometers. The plane was rocking back and forth, while also making a kind of rocking motion.
In aviation terminology, the movement is known as a “Dutch roll” because it resembles the movements of an ice skater. The convoy behind the car can make a similar movement if it starts swaying back and forth.
Pilots are specially trained to ensure that control of the aircraft is regained if this happens.
It is not clear how the plane ended up on the Dutch roll. But the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) discovered after landing that there was damage to the emergency generator on board. “The problem is not known to other airlines,” the FAA said.
There were 181 people on board. No one was hurt and the plane landed in Auckland without any problems.
Also planes right over the ocean
Bloomberg News also reported today that there was a problem with another Southwest Airlines Boeing 737: In April, a plane suddenly went down. It was 400 feet out of the ocean off the coast of Hawaii, but then managed to rise again. The error may have occurred due to pilot error.
Boeing has been under fire since the beginning of this year for a door panel on a Boeing 737 MAX that disintegrated during an Alaska Airlines flight. Inspections showed that four screws that were supposed to hold the panel in place were missing.
Since then, more reports have emerged about problems with quality controls on Boeing planes, and the FAA is investigating whether quality controls were tampered with.
