WestJet fleet not part of FAA inspection

Boeing 737 Next Generation aircraft not included in airworthiness directive

April 6, 2011

WestJet today provided information regarding the airworthiness directive (AD) which was issued by the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) in light of the recent depressurization incident on board a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-300 series aircraft on April 1, 2011.

The depressurization event was caused by a fuselage rupture on a Boeing 737-300 series aircraft operated by Southwest Airlines. The FAA and Boeing have subsequently issued an airworthiness directive (AD) asking operators of certain 737-300/-400/-500 series airplanes at or above 30,000 flight cycles (takeoffs and landings) to inspect certain lap joints on the fuselage.

The AD does not require any inspections on Boeing Next Generation 737 aircraft. WestJet's fleet of 94 Boeing 737s (13 737-600s, 67 737-700s, and 14 737-800s) is comprised entirely of Next Generation aircraft. The lap joint design on the Next-Generation series differs from that of the older generation aircraft and is not affected by this event.

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