Reminds one of the Ansett Australia B767s that were grounded in December 2000 and April 2001 because certain fatigue-related inspections had been missed.
To quote the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) report,
“There was uncertainty as to the continuing airworthiness status of the aircraft. In December 2000 the concerns related to possible fatigue cracking in the rear fuselage of the aircraft, and in April 2001 the concerns related to possible fatigue cracking of the engine strut fitting on the wing front spar.”
The ATSB report found problems existed in Ansett, the Australian regulator (the Civil Aviation Safety Authority), FAA, Boeing, and the ICAO system for continuing airworthiness assurance.
http://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/..._australia.pdf
Is it likely that the NTSB will investigate the happenings at Southwest?