Airbus Says Faults In Wing Skin Attachments Are No Threat To Safety

Airbus has confirmed in a statement that cracks have been discovered in the wings of two additional A380 aircraft, but continue to say that the flaws do not affect the safety of the airplane.

"Airbus confirms that some additional cracks have been found on a limited number of non-critical brackets ... inside the wings of some A380s," the statement said. "Airbus emphasizes that these cracks do not affect the safe operation of the aircraft."

Reuters reports that EASA said it will be issuing a service bulletin Friday requiring "precautionary" checks of the airplanes' wings. The most recent occurrence of the cracks turned up during a routine maintenance inspection, according to an Airbus spokeswoman, who did not say which airline or airlines operated the aircraft.

The cracks are in the same locations as those previously discovered in the internal rib structure of the wing on what are known as rib feet. They are the attachment points for the wing skin to the underlying structure.

There are 68 of the superjumbos in service worldwide.

FMI: www.airbus.com