desk jockey,
The aloha airlines 737 that came apart in flight was an island hopper that flew many short flights for many years, about 1 hour each in duration, subjecting the aircraft to lots of short-term pressurization/depressurization.
Since that incident, the FAA requires routine fuselage and surface fatigue checks on commercial aircraft using x-ray equipment. I beleive they also revised the airframe's life expectancy if the aircraft flies many short flights.
As far as the 747, the only incidents I can recall are that of the main cargo door opening in flight. The problem turned out to be a weak design in the cargo door latches, which was revised...and they did strengthen the frame around the main cargo door so that in the event one of those suckers does fly open again, the cabin wall will stay intact.
Last edited by Flightluuvr; 15th Jan 2005 at 13:24.