Southwest jet engine that killed woman had ‘metal fatigue’

The engine that exploded Tuesday in flight on a Southwest Airlines plane, killing one passenger, showed signs of “metal fatigue,” according to the National Transportation Safety Board. The incident marked the first passenger death on a U.S. airline since 2009. The twin-engine Boeing 737 took off from New York’s LaGuardia Airport for Dallas on Tuesday with 149 passengers on board. Debris from the left engine smashed open a window, and the depressurization of the cabin nearly sucked out one passenger from the plane. Other passengers struggled to help the woman, but she later died from her injuries. Authorities identified the passenger as Jennifer Riordan, a Wells Fargo bank executive from Albuquerque, N.M. Seven other passengers sustained minor injuries. The plane made an emergency landing in Philadelphia following the explosion. NTSB chairman Robert Zumwalt said one of the engine’s blades was separated at the point where it should join the hub and also showed signs of metal fatigue. He said authorities later found a part of the engine’s covering in Bernville, Pa., some 70 miles west of Philadelphia. As a precaution, Southwest said Tuesday night it would inspect similar engines in its fleet over the next 30 days.