FAA orders emergency Boeing 737 inspections

The Federal Aviation Administration plans to issue an emergency directive on Tuesday that "will require operators of specific early Boeing 737 models to conduct initial and repetitive electromagnetic inspections for fatigue damage."

FAA noted the directive would "initially" impact about 175 aircraft, 80 of them operating in the United States.

"Most of the aircraft in the U.S. are operated by Southwest Airlines and a few by Alaska," according to an FAA statement.

Southwest canceled hundreds of flights on Saturday, Sunday and Monday to inspect Boeing 737 aircraft after an incident on Friday in which a hole ripped open in a plane's fuselage, forcing an emergency landing.

After the Federal Aviation Administration issued an emergency directive that mandates operators of specific Boeing 737 aircraft to conduct repetitive electromagnetic inspections for fatigue damage, Southwest has grounded two more planes because of cracks, bringing the total to five.