NTSB Finds Storm Damage Missed Before Southwest Dutch Roll
Federal investigators say wind damage to a parked Boeing 737 Max 8 went unnoticed before a May 2024 in-flight incident.
Updated on Nov. 6, 2026 in Air Travel
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The National Transportation Safety Board determined that high winds damaged the tail of a Southwest Airlines 737 Max 8 parked overnight in New Orleans. Mechanics later missed the misaligned rudder, and the jet was flown 38 times before Southwest flight 746 experienced a Dutch roll on May 25, 2024.
Why it matters
The findings point to gaps in maintenance inspection guidance and airline alert systems for aircraft exposed to extreme wind. Federal investigators said the damage would have been caught with a minimum wind-speed inspection threshold in Boeing's manual or an alert system for parked planes.
Peak thunderstorm gusts of 84 mph hit New Orleans on May 16, 2024, when the jet was parked overnight. The plane was then flown 38 times with no reported rudder problems before the incident, and the Dutch roll occurred at 34,000 feet and again at 32,000 feet.
The players
National Transportation Safety Board
The federal agency that investigates transportation accidents and incidents in the United States and issues safety recommendations.
Southwest Airlines
A major U.S. low-cost carrier that operates a large fleet of Boeing 737 aircraft across its domestic network.
Boeing
The American aerospace manufacturer that designed and produced the 737 Max 8 aircraft involved in the incident.
The details
Wind likely moved the rudder and damaged the structure inside the tail fin that holds the backup rudder system. On May 24, pilots reported yaw damper issues, and the jet was flown with that system disabled before flight 746 carried six crew and 175 passengers from Phoenix to Oakland, where the pilot landed safely.
Timeline
May 16, 2024: Thunderstorm gusts up to 84 mph hit the parked jet in New Orleans.
May 23, 2024: Scheduled maintenance missed the misaligned rudder.
May 24, 2024: Pilots reported yaw damper issues and the jet was flown with the system disabled.
May 25, 2024: Southwest flight 746 experienced a Dutch roll at about 2:45 p.m.
Roadmap
The incident follows the 737 Max grounding after the 2019 crashes, which pushed the aircraft's safety record under intense regulatory review. This NTSB finding shifts attention from aircraft design to whether routine maintenance and wind-exposure procedures are adequate for the fleet.
Travelers on Southwest's 737 Max fleet are unlikely to see immediate changes, but the findings may prompt tighter maintenance checks that affect schedules. Passengers concerned about aircraft safety can review the NTSB's published findings before booking.
The takeaway
The incident shows that maintenance gaps can allow weather damage to go unnoticed for days, underscoring why inspection thresholds and parked-aircraft alerts matter. Travelers can take comfort that the flight landed safely, while the broader fleet review continues.
Further reading
Explore more on Air Travel for context on how airlines manage aircraft safety.
Source note: This article includes information reported by AZfamily.
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