European safety agency orders global check of A380 wings

Europe's air safety authority has ordered checks on the entire global fleet of Airbus A380 superjumbo jets for cracks on parts inside the wings — extending a previous order to check nearly a third of the planes.

The European Aviation Safety Agency last month issued an airworthiness directive calling for "a detailed visual inspection" of the aircraft's "wing rib feet" — the metal brackets that connect the wing's ribs to its skin.

That order applied to the 20 planes that have flown the most. Spokesman Dominique Fouda said the agency was extending the checks to the entire fleet of 68, used by seven airlines.

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