Southwest cancels dozens more flights over ongoing engine inspections

Southwest is canceling dozens more flights on Monday as it speeds up maintenance checks on its Boeing 737 fleet.

The airline canceled more than 40 flights on Sunday with hundreds delayed, and an additional 90 are grounded for Monday, according to flight tracking site Flightaware.

The airline said it planned to inspect all engine fan blades made by manufacturer CFM within a month.

"We have minimized flight disruptions this past week through actions such as proactive aircraft routings to cover open trips, performing inspections overnight, and utilizing spare aircraft, when available," Southwest said in a statement.

The airline’s inspection program doesn’t impact the FAA’s mandated ultrasonic inspections of CFM engines which the agency announced on Friday.

Passenger Jennifer Riordan, 43, died on Tuesday when a fan blade broke off on Southwest Flight 1380 and debris damaged the fuselage and a window, causing Riordan to almost get sucked out of the cabin.

She later died from her injuries.

A Southwest plane suffered a similar mishap in August 2016.

Nearly 1,000 people attended a remembrance service in Albuquerque at the weekend for Riordan.