Investigation Summary
The aircraft, named 'Queen Liliuokalani', was 19 years old and had the second-highest number of flight cycles (89,680) in the global 737 fleet. During the climb to 24,000 feet, a small crack likely originated at a rivet hole in the lap joint of the fuselage. Due to widespread fatigue damage and multi-site damage (MSD), the fuselage skin failed catastrophically. An 18-foot section of the upper cabin skin from just behind the cockpit to the fore-wing area was torn off. Despite the massive structural damage and the loss of one flight attendant who was swept overboard, the pilots managed to perform an emergency descent and land the aircraft at Kahului Airport.
Final Conclusions
The NTSB determined the probable cause was the failure of the Aloha Airlines maintenance program to detect the presence of significant disbonding and fatigue damage. This led to the failure of the lap joint at S-10L, resulting in explosive decompression. Contributing factors included the failure of the FAA to properly monitor the airline's maintenance and the lack of a requirement for inspections of high-cycle aircraft for multi-site damage.
Video Analysis
The Plane That Lost Its Roof | Aloha Airlines Flight 243 — A detailed look at the structural failure of Aloha Airlines Flight 243 and how the crew managed to land the heavily damaged Boeing 737.
Watch on YouTube ↗If playback is blocked, the owner has disabled embedding — use the link above.
Systems & Failure Modes
Fuselage Lap Joints
The longitudinal seams where aluminum skin panels are joined; failure occurred due to corrosion and fatigue.
Cold-Bonding Adhesive
A manufacturing technique used by Boeing that was found to be susceptible to corrosion and debonding in maritime environments.
Interesting Facts
- 01The aircraft had completed 89,680 flight cycles, nearly three times its original design life.
- 02A passenger reported seeing a crack in the fuselage skin while boarding but did not notify the crew.
- 03The only fatality was flight attendant Clarabelle Lansing, who was standing near row 5 when the decompression occurred.
- 04The aircraft was written off as beyond economical repair.
Safety Actions & Advisories
Aging Aircraft Program
Source ↗The FAA established the Aging Aircraft Task Force to mandate stricter inspections and maintenance for high-cycle airframes.
Multi-Site Damage (MSD) Research
Increased focus on how small, undetectable cracks in close proximity can link up to cause catastrophic structural failure.